


Together We Can't Fall

by delta2707



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Imprinting, Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Detective Emma Swan, F/F, Imprinting, Shapeshifting, Vampire!Regina, Vampires, Wolf Pack, lots of fluff, wolf!Emma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-29
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:27:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,215
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26206414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/delta2707/pseuds/delta2707
Summary: Emma Swan, wolf shifter, detective and daughter of the White Kingdom's leaders meets vampire Regina Mills, daughter of the Dark Kingdom's queen. Feeling a pull to the woman since the moment she first saw her, she can't stay away despite the kingdoms' ongoing war. Regina seems to also be having issues keeping her distance and they both struggle to abide by their strict rules. Will they make it work or will the Council decide their fate for them?
Relationships: Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Emma Swan
Comments: 19
Kudos: 162
Collections: Swan Queen Supernova V: Forever Starstruck





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Together We Can't Fall [ART]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26215921) by [ginascursed](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ginascursed/pseuds/ginascursed). 



> I won't lie and say Twilight wasn't my inspiration for this fic lol. I hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. 
> 
> Thank you to my amazing beta @Swan_mills7 for her patience and awesome sense of humor (also for saving my butt in the very last minute) and the wonderful artist @ginascursed for the beautiful piece of art.

There was once a world in a different time divided in four lands, kingdoms some called them, not very different from any other. The one thing that stood out, as one would put it, was the fact that these lands were mainly divided by species. Not the color of your skin or the language you speak or the religion one follows kind-of-species, but the kind that becomes a home for what some humans would go as far as to call monsters. 

These four lands were divided as follows: The North, home of the shifters who had proclaimed it the White Kingdom. Creatures here shifted into any kind of being imaginable, from birds, to panthers, to dragons, some took the shape of those with whom they shared the same blood, and the rulers of them all, they took the shape of wolves. 

The West or Aquatica was the land of the water creatures; from merpeople, to nymphs, to kelpies and ashrays. It was said that one might even find a leviathan or two.

The East or the Neverland was the home of magical beings such as witches and wizards, also for the fairies and a few space travelers. 

Finally we have The South, or The Dark Kingdom, which was the home of those beings of the night that were deemed soulless by the rest, and in a way, they were. This was the home of the vampires, those who had died and were brought back only to feed on those whose hearts were still beating and still had warm blood running through their veins. They possessed a thirst they could not always control. It was them who started it all.

You see, this division didn’t always exist. At one point, thousands of years ago, everyone coexisted and there was a semblance of peace. That ended when food resources eventually became limited and the creatures started killing each other. 

At first it was just one body showing up here or there but all too soon it was entire villages disappearing overnight. It started with the vampires attacking those more human-like and turning them when they were a breath away from dying. That resulted in the vampire population multiplying as if there were no tomorrow, causing the almost extinction of every other being and of course, complete societal chaos as those new vampires also needed to feed. 

This led shifters to start hunting them down in their shifted form, which was very coveted by witches and wizards as their skin had magical properties that they required for their potions and spells, much like those of the sea creatures. 

When the different groups discerned the actual extent of the damage that was caused by this carnage, leaders from each group were chosen to lead them and it was decided among them that the only way to move forward was to separate the lands, immediately setting up borders and leaving the creatures to find supplies and fend for themselves within those walls. 

Centuries later it became an issue that these long-lived creatures were trapped inside their own borders. Dragons didn’t have enough space to fly nor the wolves to form their packs. The big cats were too territorial and constantly fought each other to the death. 

Wizards, witches and fairies could not perform magic without supplies they required from other lands so they started dying from all the power they were suppressing. 

Vampires didn’t have enough sources to get fresh blood from and in the process of figuring out a way to store the little substance they could find for periods of time, a lot of them turned into ashes. 

Most of the sea creatures needed both sea and land to survive, but having been designated the farthest, with only a piece of land surrounded by water, they suffered the same fate as the other groups. 

Eventually, in order to prevent complete extinction, the leaders of each land were forced to form an alliance and concluded that peace needed to be restored but it seemed that the resentment between species was still going strong and war after war ensued after each attempt. 

Thousands of years later, when only a handful of survivors from each species remained, a new final attempt for peace was successfully put into place. 

A new land was created, where the project would take place, the Capital. A common space with open borders so the creatures could come and go as they pleased; humans were also brought in, as mediators of sorts. Enough space would be given, several food sources would be available, protection would be offered and a council would be established to maintain the order. 

However, with this newfound freedom, there was a lot of responsibility being asked of those who chose to go there. There were absolute rules that needed to be followed and they were punishable by death if broken. 

But some rules are meant to be broken. Here is where our story begins. 


	2. Chapter 1

“I still don’t understand why we need to attend these things.” Ruby said looking down to study the ends of her long brown hair. 

“Because where the Alphas go, we all go Rubes. We need to make sure they are safe. Especially during these  _ things  _ as you put it. We shouldn’t trust anyone.” Emma rolled her eyes and shook her head as she glared at her sister. 

The  _ thing  _ the brunette was talking about was a formal ceremony that was held by the leaders of the lands every nine years. It’s main purpose was to force the different groups to be in the same room together and for the Leaders to get on the same page as the elected council of the Capital. 

Everyone mostly just enjoyed the free feast, but there was also a segment of the night designated to address some concerning issues like the equal distribution of territories, and make sure that all laws were being followed as they should. If any laws had been broken, the ceremony also served as court, and people were punished if they were deemed guilty; some were banished from the Capital or even sentenced to die in front of everyone, so to make an example of them. 

On the far end of the room there was a stage for the leaders of the lands where they were probably discussing bureaucratic matters with the representatives of the council; everything seemed to be calm but Emma still decided to take a quick scan of the room to spot any potential threats. 

Emma had to agree that this time around it seemed that everyone was putting a little bit more of an effort; maybe because in an unprecedented move, the Leaders had allowed humans to attend the ceremony for the first time, as they had recently allowed for one of their kind to become a member of the Council, to represent and advocate for their rights. She thought it was only fair, because as soon as they had been introduced to the land, chaos had ensued. 

Seen as the weaker species, the vast majority had chosen them as their primary food source, given that they were easier to kill, slower to react and considerably less intelligent. She had to admit that a few hundred years ago she had been one of those who used them, but now she was proud of being one of the few that protected them as if they were part of her kind. 

Emma White was the daughter of the leaders of The North, the White Kingdom. Just like them, she was a wolf shifter and was now the Beta of their pack, meaning she was the second in command. It had taken a while for her to get there but after centuries of proving herself to both her parents and their pack, she had been chosen to be their leader and protector whenever the Alphas were unavailable.

Her sister Ruby who was sitting next to her was their pack’s Delta, making her the third in command. She and her twin brother Graham, the Lead Warrior, had joined their pack when their Alphas had been killed and instead of forming their own pack or falling under the leadership of an Alpha they didn’t trust, the White’s pack had taken them in. Packs don’t require having the same blood, as long as loyalty is proven and you follow those in a higher position, which is what the twins did. After years of proving how loyal and hardworking they were, they moved up the chain of command. 

Although the ceremony was meant to maintain the well nigh peace, the different families were separated from each other. She guessed that given the history between all of them it was for the best. The room was well decorated and spacious, they all had different color tablecloths to point which table one should join depending on their species. 

She noticed that there were waiters designated for each section and every corner had at least two guards that she assumed were ogres based on their size. 

One of the areas that so far had been empty started filling up and Emma blinked. “Do you smell that?” She asked in hushed tones to the woman next to her who didn’t even raise her head. 

“The walking dead finally decided to show up.” When she received no answer from the blonde she looked at her. “The blood suckers? The soulless?” She said with disdain. 

“I know what you meant, Ruby. I was just wondering why I put up with you sometimes.”

“Because you love me.” She replied with her trademark wolfish grin. “Besides, you know it’s true.”

Emma shook her head and decided to ignore her sister’s comment. “I meant that scent— not  _ them.  _ It’s sweet, like vanilla.”

“Ems, hun. You are always thinking about dessert and that’s probably what you are taking on because—” She shuddered and lowered her voice. “All I get is the scent of fresh blood.”

The blonde was aware that the scent of their meals sometimes lingered and was ignored by the majority of them however because of their hyper sense of smell they could tell on the spot. 

But that was not it. Yes, there was a strong iron odor in the air but in the middle of it all was something different, something dark yet sweet. Something she could only describe as vanilla and ripe plums. She looked around the room once more to see if she could pinpoint where it was coming from exactly and after going over each person individually, she was sure she had found its source. 

The woman was a vampire, that much was clear. She had an unearthly beauty about her that Emma deemed hypnotic, as she could not tear her eyes away from the figure that looked like it was chiseled in stone, her pale skin seemed to have a golden tint to it, as if kissed by the sun. Her brown, silky locks almost reached her shoulders and she had the deepest chestnut eyes Emma had ever seen, she felt she could get lost in them.

“Who is that?” She was staring so hard that Ruby had no doubt of whom her sister was talking about.

“I sometimes forget you aren’t in the capital most of the time. That’s Regina, Cora’s  _ daughter _ .” She air quoted but elaborated when she saw blonde eyebrows furrowing without looking away from the brunette across the room. “She is one of the people that Cora personally turned, and also one of the few she actually adopted into her coven. Rumor has it that she also turned her father and married him, making Regina her actual step daughter.”

Cora was the leader of the Dark Kingdom and one of the oldest vampires that still existed, no one knew exactly how old she was but she at least had a few millennia in her. 

“Why do they always look like they have a stick up their ass? Who even stands that straight? I guess it’s a being dead thing.” Ruby murmured as she also looked at the pale faces in front of her. “Anyway, enough about that. You still haven’t told me how your return to the Kingdom was. Did you find what you were looking for?”

Emma shook her head to pull her thoughts away from the woman that had caught her attention and went on to tell Ruby about these last hundred years she had been away. Every now and then glancing back to the brown eyes of the woman sitting across the room. 

* * *

“How do you deal with all these beating hearts in the same room?” The blue-eyed brunette with a thick Australian accent groaned as she sat down on their designated table. 

Regina sighed and took a seat next to Belle. “You get used to it, dear.” She wouldn’t have let the young vampire attend these types of gatherings so soon but Mother had decided that Belle was ready. 

Yes, she would assume that she was ready in the sense that she would not try to feed from anyone in the room, but she was also aware of how hard it would be for the woman to restrain herself. 

“Did you feed before coming here?” Asked a tall redhead without any real interest from where she sat at the other side of the brunette and it made Regina roll her eyes. 

“Leave her alone, Zelena.” She then turned to the younger brunette. “You’ll let us know if you can’t control it, yes?” She stated more than asked in a neutral tone. She hated being assigned babysitting duty but she also knew she was the strongest and would be the only one capable of discreetly holding back the brunette if it came down to it. 

The woman just nodded and Regina drifted into herself as the conversation around her flowed, bringing back memories of when she’d been turned. It happened about twelve hundred years ago but she remembered it clearly. She’d been a witch and had fallen in love with the stable boy, she was practicing new spells when the boy entered her vault and startled her, causing the spell to be aimed directly into his heart. She ran in front of him and it hit her instead. 

She still sometimes questions if it’d been good or bad luck, the fact that Cora’s coven had been attacking nearby villages at that exact moment; that somehow her father had managed to convince the vampire to turn her so that she wouldn’t die so young, even if it meant turning her into a monster, and that the older woman had agreed. Regina ended up killing the boy either way before she could control her blood thirst. She had also almost killed her father as well, but Cora turned him before she could get to him, as it would not be convenient to have a grieving baby vampire on the loose. 

She was pulled out of her thoughts when she felt eyes on her, reacting to the feeling she turned her head to look for the source and it wasn’t long before she found green eyes staring straight into hers. 

Regina raised a questioning eyebrow and felt more than saw when after having been caught, a slight blush covered her admirer’’s cheeks. The girl then turned to look away when the woman next to her said something but Regina was left intrigued. What had the wolf wanted with her? She had felt those green eyes on her since she first entered the room and couldn’t help but be curious as to what the woman’s intentions were. 

She was worried at first that she would be looking for conflict but the blush rapidly discarded that option. Her thoughts were interrupted again when the members of the council started thanking them for their presence and for putting in the effort to keep the peace. 

It wasn’t long before she felt those eyes on her again but this time she ignored them, knowing that Mother was also looking in their general direction to make sure that Belle was behaving. The brunette knew she wouldn’t think twice before literally ripping her head off if she made her look bad. 

She wondered if every other family was like hers. Yes, she considered her coven a family, a dysfunctional at that but a family nonetheless. She never knew her biological mother since she had passed away in childbirth so it had only been her and her father, Henry. Cora had turned him too so he was still around, a fact she appreciated. He and the older vampire had developed a weird relationship, she knew they cared for each other but they couldn’t stand to be in the same place for too long hence why he was taking care of matters in the Dark Kingdom and Cora usually stayed in the Capital with her ‘ _ children’ _ , the term fit since she was the only mother figure she had ever known. 

Said children she considered her siblings, they didn’t get along most of the time, probably because they didn’t share anything together, vampires were lonely creatures and could spend centuries without any contact between them, but she supposed that was part of it. She wouldn’t go as far as saying she  _ loved  _ them but she did care and would protect them. 

Servants bringing by trays of food once again interrupted her thoughts, she considered eating something but wasn’t really in the mood for the generic cuisine they always chose for these gatherings that they thought were acceptable for everyone’s eating habits. The brunette instead decided to step out and stretch her legs and as an afterthought determined she was bored out of her mind and it would be beneficial to step away from this nonsense. 

Making her way out to the estate’s gardens she decided that a glass of wine would be appropriate, grabbing one from the bar at the back of the room, allowing herself to take a deep breath once outside. Not that she needed to but it was a force of habit. She noticed there was a full moon tonight, it was chilly but she didn’t feel anything, as her skin was always marble cold. 

Taking a sip of her drink she found herself thinking about her powers and wondered if after all this time she still had them, she sometimes felt a tingle down her arms but she hadn’t used them since that day. 

* * *

Inside, Ruby was shoving everything she could fit in her hands inside her mouth. “I always forget that in human form I also need to eat. “Em, where are you going?” She asked as the blonde stood up from her seat. “You haven’t even touched your food. Are you okay?”

“I— Yes, Red. I’ll be right back I just have… to do something. You can have my plate.” She said and started walking in the direction the scent that had been driving her mad all night went; at the mention of more food Ruby let it go. 

What Emma found when she stepped outside took her breath away, the brunette was leaning against the concrete railing that faced the flower garden below and the full moon was shining over her, making her glow even more if that was possible. Having sensed someone approaching, the brunette turned around and her eyes turned pitch black for a second before noticing it was the same woman that had been looking at her earlier. 

Emma was at loss of words, she didn’t even know what she was doing out here following this woman she was supposed to hate, based on history and biology, but she managed. “Hi.”

Regina arched an eyebrow at the curious creature before her. “Hello.”

“I’m Emma.” She wanted to smack herself; for being almost eight hundred years old, she was acting like a teenager. 

The brunette took a sip of her wine and turned to face the garden again. “Regina.” After a few moments of silence she could still feel the woman behind her. “Is there anything you need, Emma?”

“I- no. I just saw you alone and thought you could use some company.” She said awkwardly and walked to lean on the railing herself. 

Regina chuckled darkly. “If you have not noticed,  _ Em-ma,  _ our kinds don’t really mingle.”

“Wasn’t that the whole point of this ceremony? To, you know, actually start getting along?” She smiled a smile that Regina thought was stupid, full of teeth but also endearing _. You are definitely losing it,  _ she thought to herself. 

“We’ll see how long it lasts. Given past experiences I wouldn’t bet on it.” For a long pause she could feel green eyes on her, it made her feel  _ warm.  _ Which was obviously not possible. “What are you really doing here?” 

“I’m not here to kill you if that’s what you are thinking.”

“Considering I am already dead that was not my first thought, no.” 

Emma was about to defend herself but saw the woman smirking and breathed in relief. “I honestly haven’t a clue. I just thought you smelled nice and next thing I know I’m here.”  _ What’s with the word vomit? _

Of all the things Regina would have expected this was most definitely not it. She had no response to that so she opted instead to ignore it. “I thought your kind shifted with the moon.”

Emma looked up and laughed before taking a step closer to the brunette. “That would be true if I were a werewolf.” Regina blinked. “I’m a shifter so I choose when to do so, to be fair if it wasn’t for the ceremony I would have been taking a run right now in my other form.”

“I see.”

“It’s an easy mistake, to confuse our kinds I mean.” She nodded to herself and faced the garden enjoying the comfortable silence. She would have never imagined that she would feel comfortable next to what was supposed to be her mortal enemy but here she was, actually seeking the other one out.

Regina took the opportunity to look at her companion while she seemed pensive. She was a true beauty, only highlighted by the bottle green dress she was wearing. Her golden hair was pulled up leaving her sharp jawline in full display; her skin was fair but had a trail of freckles over her sculpted nose and those green eyes that reminded her of the forest back home.

Her eyes trailed all over her face before making their way down to her long neck where they stopped. It looked so soft and she was suddenly overcome with the need to sink her fangs in that beating pulse point and- 

The brunette gasped silently and took a step back. Where had that come from? She was suddenly starving but didn’t know why. It couldn’t be because she hadn’t fed recently, because she had, and more than enough, but the subtle beating she could see beneath the woman’s skin had her throat feeling dry.

Emma had turned to face her when she heard the small intake of air and was now frowning. “Regina?” She took a step forward making the brunette take another step backwards. 

Regina didn’t understand what was happening to her and she hated not understanding. She forced herself to look at green eyes that were already staring at her both in concern and wariness. “I believe I must get going,  _ Emma.  _ I appreciate the company.” She said the latter over her shoulder as she was already making her way back inside to check on Belle before leaving. 

The blonde didn’t even have time to respond because the woman was already out of sight. She figured she should go back in, she was supposed to be guarding the Alphas after all. She sighed, what was it about the other woman that had her so transfixed? Even now that she was gone she wanted to follow her sweet scent. 

She shook her head, they were probably not seeing each other again any time soon so it would be a good thing to forget about it,  _ her.  _ Yes, that was her plan, forget about the brunette and focus on her pack. 

If only it were that easy. 

* * *

“Good morning, detective.” 

“Good morning, Fred.” She smiled at the young merman in his human form. “What do you have for me today?”

Homicide detective Emma Swan found herself back at the estate that had held the peace gathering the very next morning. A body had been found and her unit had been called in. 

“Male, mid thirties, human. By the attire I’d say he was one of the servants and not the guests.” He pointed to the tear down uniform. “Time of death seems to be between ten PM and midnight and cause of death, well—” He turned the body’s neck where two puncture wounds were visible. “I don’t like to point fingers but this looks self explanatory.”

“We all know who did it.” Graham said from behind her and she rolled her eyes ignoring him.

The detective took a deep breath and her eyes flashed yellow for a second. “I can’t pick a single scent, the guy smells like everyone in the room.”

“I think we should start with the obvious option and go from there.” 

This time Emma did acknowledge her brother. “Fine. We can start by questioning the vampires but if we don’t have hard proof we’ll question everyone else that was present last night.”

“Oh, we’ll have the evidence, sis.” He grinned. “I’ll process the warrant and bring them in for questioning at the precinct.” He stated, but waited for his sister to give the order. As soon as she nodded he was gone. 

Ever since Graham joined their pack he had a fixation with bringing the immortals down. He never really explained why but he was always looking for their fall. Thankfully, when he agreed to take the job and to relocate to the Capital, he abided by their rules. 

She shook her head and addressed Frederick. “Bag him up and I want the autopsy results asap, please. I don’t want to take any chances.”

“Sure thing, boss.” And so she went to the office where a long day awaited her. 

* * *

From her office desk she could see Graham and other other officers bringing their first suspects in, a fidgety brunette and a fiery redhead were taken to separate interrogation rooms. She knew her brother would be insufferable if she didn’t let him be the first to ask questions, so she let him be, she had paperwork to finish either way. 

She immediately recognized Cora, who had a murderous look on her face when she stepped through the door; she found it outrageous that someone in her position would be accused of such things but, oh well, laws have no exceptions. She figured it’d be ok to let her senior officer take on her interrogation as well, as she didn’t want to partake in the ancient woman unleashing her wrath. She shivered thinking about it and not in a good way. 

It was mid afternoon when she smelled it again, the sweet scent, and before she knew it she was out of her office and face to face with the brunette from last night. “Regina.” She greeted trying to sound neutral, but she was sure that if she were in wolf form, she’d be wagging her tail.  _ You sound pathetic, Emma. _

“Emma.” The pale woman gave her a curt nod. 

“It’s Detective Swan to you.” Graham snarled from where he was grabbing her arm. 

That made green eyes travel down said arm to notice that her hands were handcuffed behind her back. “What is the meaning of this? Uncuff her, now.” The three of them heard a low growl originated from her chest. 

His eyes widened not expecting his sister’s reaction. “But Em-“ He tried to defend but the look she gave him shut him up instantly. 

“ _ Now _ , Graham.” She repeated and he wasted no time in freeing the brunette’s hands. “You okay?” She asked as she saw the red burning marks on pale wrists but they healed as soon as the pure silver cuffs were removed. Regina just nodded. “Please, if you’ll follow me.” She pointed to the direction of an interrogation room but turned to address the man. “You and I will talk later.” He looked at the ground like a kicked puppy but nodded subtly.

The blonde locked the door behind her and asked the other woman to take a seat. “Please.”

“So,  _ Detective Swan _ .” She spoke in a silky voice. “Why am I under arrest?”

“You are not under arrest, Regina. I’m sorry about Graham. He gets intense sometimes, there was no need for the cuffs.”

“I would rather use the term brute, but I agree.”

The blonde chuckled. “Yeah, brute sounds about right.” 

Silence encompassed the room, Emma knew she had to start questioning the woman in front of her but  _ damn _ , why did she have to be so distracting? 

“I thought your surname was White, not  _ Swan. _ ” The brunette spoke instead. 

“Ah, I see you did your research. And here I thought I was the one supposed to ask questions.”

“You were taking your sweet time, dear. Just breaking the ice.” She smirked making Emma glance down at those crimson lips for a second. 

“It is, White I mean. Swan is what I named my wolf so it’s the one I use at work.” Regina raised an eyebrow,  _ those damned perfect eyebrows _ , and Emma scrunched up her nose shyly.

“I wasn’t the cutest pup. As I grew I started changing and I thought it was appropriate.”  _ Why was she even sharing this with this woman, Gods Emma, get a grip.  _ The vampire hummed, amused and she cleared her throat. 

“So you are your own K-9 unit, impressive.” Regina sat back on the uncomfortable chair and crossed one leg over the other.

Emma’s eyes followed the movement as it happened in slow motion, but it was probably a figment of her imagination. What she knew to be very real was the stocking clad legs and the black dress that had her wolf panting.  _ Stop. _

__

“I guess I got lucky there.” She smiled but remembered the circumstances of their encounter. “As to why you are here.” She opened the folder that was already on the table between them. “Does this guy seem familiar to you?” 

Regina studied the pictures for about ten seconds. “I believe he was working the bar last night at the ceremony.” She briefly recalled him serving her wine before she went outside for some space. 

“His body was found this morning.” She looked very closely for any reaction but the stoic features of the brunette remained the same. “Would you happen to know anything about that?”

“If you are asking if I killed him, the answer is no, detective.” She didn’t move an inch from where she was sitting but her stance got defensive. “Now, let me ask you, did you interrogate everyone else that attended the gathering last night or it was just decided that my kind was the culprit?”

The blonde didn’t say anything but picked another file from the folder and displayed it for the other woman. “I’m not saying it was you, Regina; or your kind. But the cause of death is telling enough.”

Regina looked closely at the picture Emma was showing her, it was of the man almost as pale as her, and she instantly knew his blood had been drained, she didn’t even need to look at the two little telltale holes on his neck -very similar to her own marks- for confirmation. 

This finally made her react and she frowned almost imperceptibly. “We haven’t fed from humans in ages.” She said so low that if it wasn’t for Emma’s wolf hearing it would have been lost. 

“I’m not accusing you or your coven.” She said softly. “But now you see why I had to bring you in for questioning. We are still waiting for the lab results so that we can start a formal investigation but seeing the feeble state of our peace we had to kick off somewhere.”

“Can’t go starting another war now, can we?” The brunette chuckled with no real humor. It was dark. “Yes, I can see why we would be first on your list. I can’t talk for the rest of my family but I know none of us have fed from humans in at least a century.”

Emma nodded. “Okay.”

“Okay, what?”

“Okay, I believe you.”

Regina blinked. “You do?”

The blonde blushed and contemplated if she should say what was on her mind but it seemed that she had no filter whatsoever when the captivating woman was around. “I can’t say anything about the rest of your family but- your scent was nowhere near the crime scene so to speak.” She bit the inside of her cheek.

“My  _ scent? _ ”

“I— yes.” She wanted to dig a hole and bury herself in it.  _ Way to go, Emma. _

__

“That’s the second time you make a mention of that, dear. Tell me,  _ Emma.  _ What is this scent you keep talking about?” She leaned forward while she waited for the shifter to answer. She was truly intrigued. There was something about the younger woman that she couldn’t put a finger on. She had never met someone who didn’t want to run for the hills at the mere sight of her, much less to actually want to spend time with her kind. With  _ her. _

She could tell the woman’s heart rate sped up as soon as she stepped inside the precinct and not in fear, which brought back that feeling of hunger from the night before. It wasn’t really hunger, she was sure of that. She had managed to ignore it and focus on the man that was manhandling her, not really causing any pain although the cuffs were uncomfortable enough and she didn’t appreciate the wolf’s brutality. 

But then the blonde had growled, low, deep and menacing and even though it was most likely in a demonstration of power towards the man, she couldn’t help but feel protected. Not that she needed protection of course, but still. Her throat had never felt drier, it didn’t matter she had fed hours before, she wanted to sink her teeth in the blonde’s pretty neck and feel the growl on her lips. All she could do was nod when the blonde had asked if she was okay and follow her to the room they were now in. 

So yes, Regina was intrigued. This woman was making her feel things, things she couldn't yet understand, because it had been so long since she felt anything at all, that she was puzzled and couldn’t help but wonder,  _ what was it about the blonde?  _ They were supposed to hate each other but it was obvious that hate was not what plagued the blonde’s mind and if she was being honest, neither did hers. 

Emma was blushing, for others it might have been unnoticeable but the brunette was hyper aware of the other’s blood flow. Where it went and how fast; where it  _ pulsed _ . And it pulsed all right.

She had no time to continue with her train of thought and Emma never answered her question because there was a knock on the security glass window. Something about the lab results. 

“I’m sorry but I have to take that call. You are free to go.” She fidgeted for a second before taking something out of the back pocket of her almost painted on jeans. “You can… uh… call me if you need anything… or… have any insights on the case.” She said handing the brunette her business card with her number on the back.

“Thank you, detective.” She smirked and enjoyed the fact that the woman’s heartbeat had sped up again. “You still owe me an answer.” She said but didn’t wait for a reply, leaving the room and hearing the woman behind her let out the breath she had been holding. 

The vampire shook her head. What a curious little thing indeed. 

* * *

Graham knocked on his sister’s open office door and entered when she gave a small nod as she hung up the phone next to her and sighed. “Lab tests are inconclusive but the body is indeed drained of blood, there are signs of abuse but they are trying to determine what kind of abuse.”

He sat down in one of the chairs in front of her desk. “Questioning went about the same. Apparently no one saw nor knew anything.” He scoffed. “But I know they must be hiding something.”

Emma sat back and crossed her arms. “Of course you do. Want to tell me what happened earlier?”

“With what?”

“I’m not in the mood for games, Graham. The fact that you were arresting a civilian with no proof of anything, she was supposed to come in for questioning and you bring her in as if she were a convicted criminal and if that wasn’t bad enough, in silver cuffs knowing very well she could not get those off. You know the protocol, so what’s going on?“

“I know it was them, Emma. I know it! I can feel it.”

Blonde brows furrowed. “There is no way that you could know that unless you were actually there, Graham. Not even the lab can confirm that as of yet so you can’t go around sentencing people because it’s what you think is right.”

“Why are you even defending them?” He asked in outrage. “After all the lives they’ve taken and the pain they have caused. After everything, why are you defending them?” 

“Graham, I am not defending anyone, I am doing my job. I can’t say they were the ones doing anything because I don’t have evidence for that, not even a witness. And from what I gather none of the suspects acted guilty in any way during questioning so I can’t even say that their behavior was off, you know that, you were there. So what’s with the attitude?”

The man fixed his jaw. “They killed my family, Ems. My first family.” Emma was going to ask if Cora’s coven killed his family but he beat her to it. “I don’t know which coven or who was there. I just know they attacked our village and they killed most and then turned the rest. Have you ever seen a shifter-vampire hybrid?” The blonde shook her head. “It’s a beast, Ems. An immortal, bloodthirsty shifter.” He ran a hand over his rugged stubble. “Ruby and I had to kill them, kill our own family before they killed us. And that’s on  _ them _ . Their kind is a plague and it's destructive and they deserve to be treated as such.”

It made more sense to her now why he wanted them all gone but that didn’t take away from the fact that they chose this job for a reason and had established procedures and protocols to follow. “Graham, I’m sorry. I can’t imagine what that must have been like for you and for Red and you might have a reason to hate them, but this is the life that we chose and we have to be fair to everyone. I assure you that if they are the ones responsible for this death, they will be punished accordingly. Okay?”

“Okay. Thank you, Em. Now what?”

“Now you help me finish this mountain of paperwork while we wait for the lab to call back.” She grinned at him.

“Your old age is making you procrastinate, sis.”

“Shut up, you are not much younger that me.”

“Whatever. Give me that.” He took some of the files and sat down to help her, that’s how they stayed the rest of the afternoon until they got an answer for the lab.

* * *

As soon as Regina stepped inside she could feel Mother pacing from inside her home office. She wondered why she even bothered having locks if the woman would just come and go as she pleased. 

She had no idea of what to expect but she knew that Cora was not happy about having been dragged to the station and interrogated like a common criminal. 

“What took you so long?” The older brunette asked as soon as she stepped through the door. 

“Hello to you too, mother.”

“I have no time for this, Regina. I already wasted my day in that filthy station with the filthy dogs and then you go and spend your sweet time getting home.”

“Yes,  _ my  _ home, mother. What are you doing here? How did you even get in?”

“I have my ways but that’s irrelevant. What are we going to do?”

“About?”

“Gods Regina, you are your father’s daughter; about the wolves. You don’t really think we will let them get away with treating us the way they did today?”

“And what do you propose we do, mother? Did they show you the files? I would say there’s a valid reason for them to believe it was us.”

“Minutiae.”

“I believe there’s nothing we can do without starting up another war, mother. We just have to let them do their job, after all it was the Council who set up the police department, with your approval.”

“When I said  _ we _ , I meant  _ you,  _ dear. I’m sure you will find a way to get back at them.”

“Mother, I’m not—” Cora raised a hand to silence her. 

“I was not asking, darling. Now, I will be gone for a while, I’ll go see your father back in the Kingdom and I expect for this to be taken care of by the time I come back, yes?”

She was aware of the underlying threat behind Cora’s words.  _ You take care of them or I’ll take care of you.  _ It was nothing new and to be honest she was tired of doing her mother’s dirty work but there was only one answer that would get her off her back while she figured out what to do. “Yes, mother.”

“Good, I’ll see you soon enough, dear.” With that she left the house. 

* * *

Later that night, Regina sat on the leather couch sipping on a glass of homemade cider and her phone in her hand, she dialed the number that was on the back of the business card the blonde shifter had given her earlier and waited for the blonde to pick up. 

“Detective.” Shesaid in her dark velvet voice. “How does coffee sound later this week?”

  
  



	3. Chapter 2

“Detective Swan speaking.” The blonde said as she swallowed the last of her bear claw and reached for her hot chocolate atop her desk. An unknown number was calling her personal phone so she decided it was best to be professional. 

_ “Detective.”  _ She heard from the other line and didn’t need to ask who it was; she’d recognize that voice anywhere. 

“Regina, I mean- Miss Mills. I wasn’t expecting to hear from you so soon. How can I be of assistance?” She was blabbering but found she couldn’t help it and didn’t care. 

_ “How does coffee sound later this week?”  _ The brunette asked and sipped her wine.

“Coffee? As in friends having coffee?” She sounded so hopeful she had to roll her eyes at herself and as she apparently couldn’t keep her hands still, she spilled her lukewarm chocolate all over her jeans.  _ Shit. _

__

It was clear by her tone that the blonde had not been expecting the call and much less the latter question and although she could not see it, she could imagine the shifter would be out of sorts. “ _ I would say it’s  _ more of a ‘there’s matter I’d like to discuss with you’  _ coffee.” _

Not having anything to clean herself with, she opted for standing in the middle of the large office with one hand on her hip and the other holding the phone. “I- yes. Of course, you have my number so text me the date and address and I’ll be there.”

“ _ Very well, I’ll see you then, detective.” _

Shoving the device in her back pocket she contemplated changing into the spare clothes she kept in her drawer but decided instead to go for a run. Maybe Red would join her. She definitely had a lot of energy to burn. 

* * *

Regina had a free schedule on Wednesday so that’s when they agreed to meet up. The place was downtown, which humans mostly populated and Emma was about to back out when Regina led her to an empty dark alley.  _ Who was she kidding she’d follow the woman anywhere.  _ She had to do a double take when a green door appeared out of nowhere or at least she thought it had, because she hadn’t seen it before and the brunette knocked with her index knuckle before said door was opened from the inside. 

“Welcome to Adam’s Garden.” Said the man who opened the door, Emma could tell he was an elf by his scent, he smiled in greeting and both women nodded when he showed them to their booth.

The place was dimly lit, definitely looked like the favorite hangout place for humans and some less-than-obvious magical beings. It wasn’t very loud, thanks to her hearing she could make out the voices and conversations a lot clearer but mainly everyone was minding their own business, some eating, some drinking either coffee or beer but everything was rather calm. 

When they reached their table in a corner at the far end of the place she finally spoke. “Color me surprised, I wouldn’t have pictured you coming to a place so… _ popular. _ ”

The brunette chuckled and sat down facing the wolf. “Well, I couldn’t very much take you to one of the places I frequent the most now, could I?”

“I suppose not.” She smiled at her companion and accepted the menu from the elf, not wasting time scanning it. “What’s good here?” 

“I believe it’s safe to say that our tastes are nothing alike. I’m sure whatever you get will be fine, dear.”

Emma rolled her eyes but her heart was doing somersaults at the way the brunette said  _ dear.  _ Regina of course noticed it but chose to ignore it. “Alright, then I’ll have a grilled cheese and iced coffee.” She said to the man who nodded and took the menu back from her doing the same for the brunette after she ordered a flat white coffee.

The vampire shook her head. 

“What?” 

“You eat like a human child.” 

They sat in silence waiting for their order. Emma was fiddling with a paper napkin and Regina was openly staring at the blonde, studying her features. The same long princess curls she had had the pleasure of admiring the day of her interrogation were on display. However, today the blonde was wearing an obnoxious turtleneck gray sweater that would have been fine if not for the fact that it hid that beautiful long neck from her view, although she could still sense the blonde’s racing pulse from her wrists. 

If she had been one of the creatures that needed air to survive, she was sure her lungs would have collapsed from the sheer force of her need to taste the woman in front of her. 

Hurting her never even crossed her mind; all she wanted was to confirm if the detective was as sweet as she smelled and as soft as she looked. Maybe she would even run her tongue over the small wounds to heal them, but it was highly likely that they’d close almost immediately after on their own, due to the blonde’s genetics. 

When she felt the blood she had fed from earlier rushing to places it shouldn’t, her eyelids fluttered and she noticed she couldn’t fully close her mouth as her fangs had extended at some point without her notice; she was overwhelmed by the same starving feeling she’s had on the both occasions their paths have crossed. She was quick to pull them back to their normal state, or as normal as they could get, which was still pointy enough to recognize her kind if she so much as spoke. 

Clearing her throat, to ground herself more than anything, she prompted the blonde to look up from the now wrecked piece of paper. 

“So, what matters did you want to discuss with me?

“My mother.” She figured it would be best not to waste time. 

“Your mother?” When the vampire nodded she continued. “Okay, what about her?”

She waited until the waiter bringing their orders left again before saying what she had to say. “Well.” She scoffed when the blonde took a massive bite of her sandwich while looking straight at her. “It seems that despite playing a big role in this supposed peace between the lands, she would not put it past her to start another war.”

The statement made the blonde choke on her food and Regina raised an unamused brow. She had seen this coming after all; with the way the blonde was engulfing her meal. Were all shifters like this? She wondered. “What do you mean?” Food forgotten, she focused on brown eyes. 

“Thanks to your little stunt last week, she wants revenge. On you in particular.” 

“ _ Me _ ? I wasn’t even the one that brought her in for questioning.”

“Possibly, but you are the one in charge of the police department, so to her it is all the same.”

“And that’s why you brought me here? To avenge your mother?” She shifted in her seat. 

“Don’t be dense, detective. I have no plans of harming you, nor of starting another war.”

Blonde brows furrowed when she didn’t know if she should feel offended by the vampire’s words. “What makes you think that you could get close enough to harm me?” 

“I would say I am close enough now, detective. And if my intention was to hurt you, there would be nothing stopping me from doing so.” 

“Well, maybe if that was your intention then I could just rip that pretty head off your shoulders instead.”

Brown eyes smiled as they locked with forest green. “So you think I’m pretty.”

Emma’s eyes widened going back in her head to what she had said and a faint blush covered her cheeks. “That’s not- um.”

“You didn’t mean it?” She teased. 

“Yes. No. I-“ She shook her head fervently. Who would have thought that Cora’s daughter, a vampire, would make the heir of the White Kingdom and the White pack’s second in command blush.

“I will go back to the topic in hand to spare you the obvious suffering. Since you are not hurt in any way and my pretty head is well in place over my shoulders, I would say it’s clear that is not why I asked you to join me this afternoon.” 

Emma was thankful for the initial subject being brought back and nodded accepting the explanation for now. 

“Now that we’ve covered that, I am ready for the pointless wars to be over. We might be partaking in this little peace project, but it feels like there is always something that will destroy it once again, and then we’ll have to start all over.” The shifter could have sworn that the woman’s eyes turned from the warm brown to pitch black but it was only for a second. If that was the case she couldn’t really blame her. She had also been through very dark times whenever the lands were in an active war and she was done with them as well. 

“Okay, so what do you propose we do? Do you actually think Cora would start another war for- for what? Being brought into the police station for questioning?”

“Mother feels humiliated and she likes using us to cause chaos, she has made it clear to us that just as she made us, she can destroy us.” Green eyes blinked. “ _ Us _ , being her  _ children _ .”

“She sounds like a piece of work.”

“You have no idea.” She stated simply not wanting to get into how much of a piece of work Cora actually was. “And regarding a plan, that’s why I thought it best to come to you with my predicament, she is away for an uncertain amount of time but she is expecting your head on a spear when she comes back.” She flashed a humorless grin that made Emma swallow hard.

“Okay, well. We don’t want that.” She deadpanned and thought for a second. “Would it help if we apologize for the troubles caused?”

“If by apologize you mean humiliate and torture yourself in some kind of way publicly, then yes.”

“Not particularly what I had in mind.”

“Then no, she is very capable of saying that you locked her up in a dungeon and attacked her when you brought her in so that the Council will take actions against you, the shifters and the police department. And if your apology is not public, she will deny it to her last breath, so to speak, that you ever offered one.” 

Emma sat back and slumped against the booth. “Then I will need to think of something else because my parents have been waiting for an excuse to close up the borders again and if this gets out, they will do it in a second.” She grabbed the rest of her grilled cheese and ate it in one bite.

Regina looked at the blonde who appeared to be deep in thought as they shared the same comfortable silence from before. She was sure the shifter or the both of them would come up with something to keep Cora under control so she relaxed her tense posture a little. After a few moments she asked what was on her mind. “I don’t know if I should ask about your case but, did you find who killed the human?”

Green eyes focused back to brown and cleaned her mouth with a new napkin before answering. “We did actually.” She frowned not knowing if she should share the details but she decided it wouldn’t be an issue. “At first, as you already know, we just assumed it was vampires because the bite marks are almost the same but um- the autopsy also showed abuse in a way?” She shifted uncomfortably. “Doc was able to identify that not only was the victim drained of his blood, but that his soul had also been sucked out. From his ass.” She added the latter after a pause. “So, we identified the creature responsible as a Kappa.”

The brunette was scowling in disgust but also surprised by the unusual creature and their feeding ways. Not one to judge, of course. But still.

“They are not from this world so we assume that a space traveler must have brought it from somewhere and has been moving around through the various water bodies that connect the lands, which is probably why we couldn’t get a scent either. Now we are just waiting on a lead to catch it.“

“I’m sure you will, dear.”

That  _ dear  _ again, damn it. “I feel like I am at disadvantage here, you know a lot about me and I know next to nothing about you, Miss Mills.”

Regina hummed. “I am not a sharing creature, detective. But what would you like to know?” If she hadn’t been aware of the blonde’s genes by now, she would have figured it out by the way she reacted like an eager puppy. 

Emma leaned forward with her arms on the table and rested her chin on her open palm. “I don’t know. Anything you want to tell me.”

Regina’s eyes shined. “Well, I am a vampire.”

“Oh, come on.”

“You said anything.”

“Okay, well tell me something about being a vampire. And not that you need blood to survive.” She added with a mocking glare. 

The vampire chuckled. “Very well let’s see, my eyes change color depending on how I feel. If I am calm and full they stay brown, if I am mad or hungry they go pitch black including the sclera, and right after feeding they go dark red.”

Emma smiled that smile of hers that Regina deemed stupid, with dimples and all, thinking about those eyes she knew would look beautiful in any color. “Interesting. Mine just change to golden when I shift or whenever my wolf comes out.” To prove her point she flashed her eyes golden for about two seconds before they went back to bright green. 

Regina took a sip of her coffee to stop a groan from leaving her lips. For reasons beyond her comprehension, the image of the woman’s wilder side did things to her. “Interesting indeed.”

The blonde unconsciously scooted closer. “Anything else you want to share?”

She was amazed by how comfortable she felt about sharing tidbits of her life with this stranger. After a pause she answered. “I have not bitten anyone in about two centuries. Last one was my husband.”

Green eyes widened like saucers. “You are married.”

“Was married.” It was funny to see how the last piece of information brought the small smile back to the wolf’s face. “He left me for another vampire whose body was turned before mine.”

“He must have lost his mind. You are gorgeous.”  _ What the hell, Emma? _ “Um- anyway. How did you feed off of him if he was also a vampire? Assuming he is one.”

Regina chose not to say anything about the blonde’s comment and simply enjoyed silently the way her heart seemed to beat a mile a minute. “He is. We’d share occasionally. He’d feed and I’d feed off of him.“ She finished her coffee keeping an eye on the blonde’s reactions. “Not a common practice as it is very intimate to feed directly from someone else.”

The blonde swallowed not being able to help thinking that she’d like to know what that meant. “And now I’m guessing you use the blood bank.”

“Indeed. Part of the new project is the blood donation to avoid accidents especially with new vampires. Some of us like it better as we can choose blood type and with which qualities, for example, I find human blood  _ bland  _ and merpeople to be really salty as opposed to, let’s say fairies.”

“What about shifters?”

“What about them?”

“How do we taste? Our blood, I mean.”

“Can’t say I’ve had the pleasure. Your kind is not very keen on keeping us alive so they don’t contribute to our survival.”

Emma rolled her eyes. “I’d say we are too proud and selfish in that sense.” A moment of silence ensued before she spoke again. “Would you like to?”

A perfect brown brow rose. “Are you offering?” Regina asked with a smirk and a low tone. 

“No- no. I was just- wondering. If you have ever thought about it I mean.” 

_ Not until recently.  _ “No, dear. Can’t say I have.” If only she knew. 

Emma breathed. “Okay. Cool.” She was about to say something else but her phone buzzed in her pocket, taking it out she scanned the screen for a second and sighed.

“I take it you have to go?” 

“Yeah.” She tried not to sound disappointed. “I have to go to the precinct for a case.”

Regina hummed. “I’ll get the bill so that you can be on your way.”

The shifter stood up. “No, no. I’ll get it.” The older woman opened her mouth to speak but she stopped her. “It’s the least I can do. I insist.” When the brunette nodded she walked to where the counter with the cashier was and paid for their orders, then went back to the booth where the vampire was already up and waiting. “Shall we?” She extended her hand allowing for the brunette to lead the way. She most definitely did not mind following behind the majestic figure.

Once outside they stood in silence not really knowing how to go about saying goodbye. Emma leaned against the brick wall next to the dark green door they had come out from, and her position let her admire the brunette’s curves encased in an all black power suit. She wondered if all the woman’s clothes were black as it was the only color she had seen her in. The color definitely suited her. 

That and the perfectly applied red lipstick, or maybe it wasn’t lipstick? Maybe that was the woman’s natural lips? She decided she could find out if only- 

“I believe this is where we part ways, detective.”

She smiled. “You can call me Emma, you know?” Her smile faded and she bit the inside of her cheek and took a step closer to the brunette. “When can I see you again?”

Regina seemed to be searching her eyes for only a second. “To discuss my mother, I presume.”

Emma took another step closer. “Of course.” She flashed a grin because it didn’t matter the setting, she was excited to see the woman again. 

“I believe it is your turn to choose a date and place,  _ Em-ma _ . You let me know.” She smirked that smirk of someone who knew all the answers to the universe but would keep them to themselves.

She nodded not being able to respond after hearing her name leave those crimson lips and they walked side by side to the busy street at the other end of the alley where they had parked. “I’ll text you.” Emma said to the woman’s back before she left in a dark car just as mysterious as her. 

The blonde watched the vampire leave before shaking her head to break out of her daze. She figured she could focus now that vanilla and plums were out of the way. Maybe she’d text the woman after she dealt with whatever was waiting for her back at the station. Yeah, she’d do that. 

Walking to where her bike was parked, she put on her helmet and hopped on, hoping there was not too much traffic just so that she could crank up the speed to the precinct. 

* * *

Less than twenty minutes later she was walking through the door and immediately she could feel the tension in the air. A few eyes lingering longer than usual on her but before she could call them all out Graham approached her. 

He scrunched up his nose when he smelled the vampire’s stench on his sister but not knowing how she might react to the case they were about to take he decided not to mention it. 

“What’s going on?” 

“Maybe we can talk in your office?” He offered. 

Emma was about to refuse but when she glanced around again she couldn’t help but feel uneasy. She nodded. 

Once inside she dropped her keys on her desk and folded her arms. “Want to tell me what that’s all about?”

Graham closed the door behind him and was thankful for the soundproof walls of the station. “Ems, I- there is this case I took a while ago.” She looked pointedly at him because that was his job after all. “It was a homicide, nothing out of the ordinary for what we could tell, we knew it was one of our own right away and we didn’t have a lead. Then I sent the samples we gathered to the lab and after a few weeks we finally got the results back.” 

“Why did it take weeks when it should have only taken a couple of days?” She asked as he opened the folder he had been holding to show her. 

“I wanted to be sure so I asked them to run the tests again.”

The blonde frowned at him but took the folder and read the files. Female phoenix, about 20 years in her new cycle but possibly over three thousand years old. Drugs in her system proved that she was forced to change into phoenix form, presumably to rip her feathers off. Tortured in both forms for her tears and ultimate COD was the removal of her eyes that impeded her to heal and without her feathers she could not be reborn. 

“O-kay.” She said she already had a bad feeling about where this was going. “Do we have a suspect?”

“Yes and no.” He doubted before he handed her another file. “We found traces of magic where the body was found. It was very faint so at first I couldn’t identify it but-“ He pointed at a specific point on a map. “With the lab test we were able to identify that that particular type of magic is most commonly practiced around this region.” 

“That’s the Neverlands.” She muttered more to herself than to her brother. She looked up at him with unreadable eyes. “Do we know-?”

She left the question as it was, he knew what she meant. “A sorcerer for sure.” He watched as she ran a hand through her hair, something she did when she didn’t know how to react. “The trace itself was very hard to follow but we lost it a couple of days ago. I wasn’t sure if we should tell you about it all things considered but we need everyone on board since we have reasons to believe he is still in the Capital and planning another murder.”

Emma fixed her jaw so hard he thought it might snap out of place. “I want everyone on this, Graham. If they are not working on an active investigation this is what they are working on. I don’t care how long it takes, we work around the clock and we catch this guy.”

He nodded. 

“Has anyone talked to her family yet?”

“No, we have not been able to locate them but we know they are from the North.”

“I’ll find them, you focus on finding this guy.”

“Yes, sis. Will you be okay?”

“I will be when we get the bastard.”

He nodded again before leaving the office, she didn’t even notice as thoughts of the victim consumed her and memories were brought back. Almost every creature in the lands believed vampires were the one threat to them, but in Emma’s experience, it was the sorcerers who they should be weary of, because of the way they killed their targets. Yes, vampires killed more often but they had to feed. Sorcerers didn’t care as long as they got what they wanted, and they tortured their marks, sometimes not even sparing them the suffering and leaving them to die. 

And that’s how the next few weeks passed, she barely slept and only ate when her wolf got restless. They had a strong lead they had been following but it had vanished near the border. An old aswang at the black market had been able to provide a vague description of someone who had sold one of the phoenix’s feathers, but apparently it was a thief who had  _ found  _ it.

Emma entered her office after having spent hours with the pack around the woods tracing the scent of magic. She was tired and frustrated. They had been so close and they all thought this had been it. A knock on her door stopped her pacing. 

“Killian. Please tell me you were luckier than us.”

The hydra with a thing for eyeliner shook his head dejectedly. “I’m sorry, love. We lost him by the portal in lake Nostos. He might not even be in this world anymore.”

She nodded but said nothing, he knew better than to get in her way so he closed the door after him. Not a second later she grabbed a vase on her desk and threw it to the nearest wall, finding a bit of relief when the shattered pieces flew around the room. 

She grabbed her leather jacket from behind her chair and the keys of her bike from her desk deciding she could not spend any more time in there, she needed air. 

“Hey, where are you going?” Graham asked before she exited. 

“I need a break.”

He nodded. “I’ll text you if we get any updates.” She acknowledged him and with that she left. 

After riding for a while she reached the harbor and sat on a bench overlooking the water. Usually it calmed her, but she couldn’t help but feel that lately it had been against her. Before she could continue with her thoughts she sensed a familiar scent and then heard someone getting closer.

“Detective.”

“Regina.” She couldn’t help the small smile. 

“Mind if I sit?”

“Please.” She gestured with her hand to the spot next to her. “Are you stalking me?” She joked. 

“You would think so based on how frequently we’ve seen each other after never having met before.” She joked back. “However, the answer to that is no, dear. I was in a meeting a few buildings down when I saw your blinding mop of hair and thought it rude not to come say hello.”

“Ah. Because we are such good friends.”

“I can leave if you prefer.”

“No, no. Stay.” She found that the woman’s presence was doing a better job at calming her than the water. “Speaking of rude, I’m sorry I didn’t text.”

“It’s quite alright. It’s not like we are such good friends after all.” The brunette threw back at her.

“Touché, Mills.” She smiled in answer to the brunette’s own. “But seriously, I said I would just- we are dealing with this case I’m having a hard time with.” She looked back at the water. 

“Would you like to talk about it?” Regina asked after a pause. 

“I wouldn’t want to bore you and much less waste your time.”

“I’m done for today, detective. And I asked, didn’t I?”

Emma sighed. “If you are sure.” She waited for an answer but the brunette just crossed her legs, sitting as regal as ever with both hands clasped on her lap and looking at her expectantly. “I once had a brother; a biological brother. August was older for about a century or so. He was so amazing.” She smiled sadly. “Charming and so strong, he took after dad. He was a great leader and naturally, he was the beta next in line to be the pack’s alpha. He was so good that my parents even considered stepping down from their roles before their time and he was training me to be his beta. You see, even though there was a certain age gap between the both of us we were really close. 

He always took care of me when my parents couldn’t or were away fulfilling their duties. He taught me everything I know.” She wasn’t entirely sure why she was sharing a very important part of her life with the woman sitting beside her but just like earlier, she found she couldn’t stop and didn’t want to. 

“My pack is different from others, usually alphas breed until they have enough pups to build them; my parents didn’t want that. They saw that there were many outcasts and orphaned shifters, they believe more than anything in second chances so our pack is built mainly from shifters that have been brought in. For this to happen they of course have to prove their loyalty and then there’s this ritual when they are ready to bind our blood together and officially make them family, but anyway.

This guy arrived one day, all bloodied from head to toe. He explained that his own pack had been attacked and he was the sole survivor, he claimed that as the omega he didn’t have much to do and had been scanning the land nearby when he heard the cries of his siblings, but when he got there it was too late. Of course our alphas offered assistance and took him in.” She smiled sadly again. “My parents always tried seeing the good in others, always alert but welcoming, they never saw this coming. 

He was older than me, even Auggie. He didn’t shift much and when he did it was for very short periods of time, he said it was because some sort of magic from the attackers had injured his wolf and he hadn’t been the same since. We didn’t mind, you use your wolf as you please, but it was odd, especially because it’s our essence, we need them to survive, but whatever he was comfortable with was fine by us. He’d roam for the most part, would take walks when we went for runs and so on.

Fast forward to when Graham and Ruby joined us, I had injured my leg wrestling with Red, go figure. She was way stronger than me back then.” She chuckled at the memory. “Anyway, I stayed home healing for a few days before resuming our runs and Neal and I became close. By this point in time I was around three hundred and my parents were delighted with the idea of me finding a mate so I thought, why not give it a try? I liked the guy, the pack approved of him and with time I did believe that I had fallen in love. 

I knew I’d probably never find what my parents had, they imprinted on each other as soon as they met which is the closest thing to true love you’ll ever get, but I thought I could make it work. I healed, resumed my runs, I trained young wolves and helped August protect the pack and well, Neal mostly kept to himself.” She swallowed and looked down at her hands. 

“One day he approached August and asked to talk to him alone, far enough that none of us could hear. Graham said not to worry and joked that he was probably going to ask for my hand in marriage since he had brought it up before, so I didn’t think more of it. But hours went by and they were not back, it was after midnight when I asked a group to help me look for them, they had gone far enough that not even a trail of their scent was left in the air but with all of us looking it wasn’t long enough before we found something.”

Emma’s jaw tensed and she looked back up to the water hoping that the waves could distract her. “I knew it was August as soon as I saw the body. He was half shifted, naked as if he had been trying to shift back and he was lying in a puddle of blood. I was in a state of shock and didn’t understand what I was seeing, I looked around to see if Neal had also been attacked but he was nowhere to be found.

I saw August move his finger and in less than a second I was kneeling next to him, without even opening his eyes he just said three words;  _ Neal, magic,  _ and  _ illusion.  _ That was all I needed, I had heard of it but we were so strong as a pack together that it never crossed my mind it could happen to us. I immediately understood that Neal had taken my brother’s fur; he had skinned him alive in his wolf form because he needed it for a spell. 

He was a sorcerer who had perfected the art of illusion and had fooled us all, he tricked us into believing that his scent was one of a shifter and changed his appearance so we could see him shift. Everything made sense; he disappeared for weeks at a time every now and then, he cooked his meat before eating it, he never went for runs and didn’t shift because after all, he was never one of us.” Her nostrils flared and she took a deep breath. “And August died because of me, because my feelings got in the way of assessing a threat.”

“It was not your fault, Emma. He was obviously good at what he was doing.”

“Yeah.”

After moments of silence, Regina spoke again. “What happened after?”

Emma sighed. “Well, August obviously died and I lost it. I spent years looking for Neal since I didn’t know what he smelled like without the illusion but life has a very dark sense of humor. One random day I saw my brother’s fur being sold as a blanket in a store near the border from the Neverlands and I just followed that lead until I found him a few months later. 

Then I ripped his limbs off one by one. He passed out before I was done biting his head off.” She ran a hand through her hair. “I wanted to kill them all, every single one of them. Especially those who contributed to August’s death but I kept hearing his voice in my head.  _ Little duckling, you have a very long life ahead of you.  _ So I left, I left the pack and explored the lands before the next war started and the borders were closed again. I tried to learn how to live without him, my rock. 

When I came back I was ready to resume the role he had wanted me to take and that’s also when my parents took an active part in the war, they waited for me to come home. They also understood when I told them I was nowhere near ready to be an Alpha but that I would happily be their beta. They agreed to maintain their status until I was.” She scrunched her nose cutely. “Now the case I’m working on is too similar to this and it’s getting to me.”

“I’m sorry you went through that.”

“It’s life, isn’t it? I learned to be more mindful of who I trust.”

“I can understand that.” The brunette stated simply. 

“I feel like I can trust you.” The wolf said.

“You don’t even know me, dear.”

“I know, I can’t explain it. And I don’t want to believe I’m making a mistake.”

The brunette looked at the blonde’s profile for a moment. “I did tell you about my mother wanting your head, didn’t I?”

“That you did. I’ll count that as a good start.” She smiled at the vampire, genuinely this time. 

“Would you be interested in coming over for a drink? I believe you might need it after that heart to heart.”

“And you just might be right. I would love that. I have my bike though so I’ll follow you.” Regina raised an eyebrow questioningly. “I like speed, okay? Don’t judge.”

“Duly noted.” They stood up and made their way to their respective vehicles. Emma, following closely behind the dark car from before until they pulled up in a driveway that led to a huge white two story mansion. 

Emma parked and removed her helmet giving a low whistle. “Impressive, Mills.” She could have been referring to the house or the nylon-clad legs stepping out of the car, she wasn’t entirely sure. 

“Thank you, dear.”

The blonde followed the vampire inside and admired the decor; it definitely suited the classy woman in front of her and was not at all what she had expected, which was for there to be coffins and shackles all over the place.

She followed the woman into what she assumed was the brunette’s home office. “Cider good?” Regina asked, taking two glasses out of a cabinet and heading straight for the decanter, pouring two generous glasses not really waiting for an answer. 

Green eyes not leaving her form for a second, every move seemed calculated but carefree at the same time. “Got anything stronger?” She swallowed. 

“I assure you my cider is strong enough, even for you kind.” With a knowing smirk she handed one of the glasses to Emma. 

And if the cider was nearly as heady as the scent of the woman, she didn’t doubt the statement for a second. 

“Please sit.” Regina pointed to one of the two cream-colored sofas and they sat each in one end facing the other. 

Emma took a sip of her drink and was immediately overwhelmed by the rich taste. “This  _ is  _ strong.”

The brunette gave her an ‘ _ I told you so’  _ look. 

“Where’d you get it?” The blonde asked, taking another small sip, savoring the taste. “It’s really good, I don’t think I’ve had anything like this.”

“I made it.”

“No you didn’t.”

“Are you calling me a liar, detective?” The brunette teased. 

“I- no. I just can’t picture you picking apples to make cider.”

“So you’ve pictured me doing other things.” The vampire half stated, half asked before sipping on her own to stop herself from licking her lips at the wolf’s blush. 

As she had expected, Emma choked on her drink. “You have to stop doing that.” She managed when she got her breathing back under control. 

“Doing what, dear?”

“That.” She flailed her hand. “Saying things.”

“You want me to stop talking?”

“No!” Emma looked down where she was fingering the rim of her glass and muttered something unintelligible. 

Regina studied the woman’s face, something she found herself doing whenever she was in the presence of the blonde, but she couldn’t understand the shifter and hoped to find answers on her face. “I do have to ask,  _ Emma.  _ What are you doing here?”

The blonde looked up at her confused and frowned. “Um, you invited me?”

The older woman chuckled and shook her head. “I mean, what are  _ you  _ a shifter doing in a vampire’s home? Our kinds have been sworn enemies for longer than either of us existed and yet here we are, talking about life and having a drink.”

Emma sat back and rested her head against the armrest, looking up at the high ceiling. That’s something she has been asking herself, but opted to go with the second thing that was on her mind. “I think that’s part of the problem, you know? Why we never find peace fully. Yeah, we live in the same land now, but everyone is so alienated from the other species that there is no unity whatsoever. Even our leaders endorse that we stay as far as possible from each other, which I find counterproductive.”

Regina hummed taking in what the blonde was saying. 

She raised her head to look at the brunette, saying part of the first thing she had thought about. “I’m here because I want to be, I find myself enjoying your company and I don’t see why we shouldn’t.”

“What about your pack? What if they found out you were hanging out with a  _ blood sucker _ ?” Regina inquired.

The blonde slumped, dropping her head back again and groaned. “I don’t even want to think about that, most of them are so close-minded.”

The vampire stood up. “Refill?” She asked and Emma nodded gratefully handing her the empty glass, their hands almost touching but not quite. 

“What about your coven?” 

“I can’t imagine they’d be thrilled. However, they do not care much for what I do.”

Emma furrowed her brows, not because of what the other woman was telling her but because as soon as she stood up and walked away to refill their glasses she felt a sense of loss that she couldn’t explain.

In fact, it was the same feeling she’s had since the day she last saw the brunette. It was always latent but there, she had attributed it to the case and the memories it had brought back but as soon as her senses had registered the dark vanilla scent earlier, the feeling had completely vanished. 

Now that she was relaxed and had no pressing matters to tend, she paid close attention to what she was feeling.  _ Weird,  _ she thought when the feeling left after the vampire handed her the new drink and sat back down in close proximity. 

After taking a sip of the fresh glass she leaned further back on the couch, stretching her legs and crossing them at the ankles, she decided she’d have to look further into that later. 

“I see that you’ve made yourself at home, detective.” She said crossing her own legs at the knee. 

“It’s not my fault that your couch is so comfortable.” The blonde said and sighed, taking another sip of the sweet drink.

Regina regarded her for a second. “I would slow down with the drinking if I were you, dear. You are not used to it and it gets stronger in your system.”

Emma scoffed and closed her eyes. “Your cider might be strong but I’d need to have a few gallons of it to get drunk.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” 

Emma hummed and they sat in comfortable silence for a while, each to their own thoughts. “I meant to ask earlier, I saw you walking around in broad daylight. Doesn’t your kind ignite in flames or something with the sun?” 

A low laugh that made her insides warm could be heard from next to her and she opened one eye to look at the brunette. “Another common misconception, dear. Our skin is sensitive to it, yes. Direct light might cause irritation and in some cases burns and blisters but they heal quite fast and no, we do not ignite.” She gave the blonde that side smile she found dangerous in so many ways. 

“Huh. I don’t know why I always believed everything they told me. I have to say you are not what I expected, Mills.” She gave her own small smile but it faded when Regina licked her lower lip, most likely to clean the traces of her own drink. 

Eyes zeroing on those full lips she was still curious about and not without effort looked back into brown eyes when she spoke. “I could say the same thing about you.”

Emma slowly sat up and they both looked at each other, while Regina was fighting the urge to nuzzle the blonde’s neck, still wondering if she tasted as good as she looked, Emma was itching to scoot closer to the vampire so as to smell her better. It seemed that the scent of the woman had only gotten stronger and she could practically savor it, her mouth watering. 

“You smell so good.” Green eyes blinked when she heard what she had just said. “I’m- I mean- sorry. I don’t know where that came from.” She grumbled and drank the remnants of her glass in one go. 

Regina having been brought back from her own thoughts raised an eyebrow. “So you’ve said, dear. Though I am still not entirely sure what that means.”

A growl-like groan could be heard coming from deep within the blonde. “I’m not sure I know what it means either.” She ran a hand down her face. “I just know that the day of the gathering I got distracted by it and it just keeps getting stronger.”

Regina swallowed as her throat had become dry again with the look on Emma’s face. “Is it a vampire thing?” She asked curiously and the blonde shook her head. 

“No, if I’m being completely honest I have never encountered anything like it; and I’ve been to every land.” She bit the inside of her cheek. 

Red lips pursed, so the odd behavior was not only from her side. She would never admit to anyone but herself that the wolf sitting on her couch made her feel conflicted. “How would you describe it?”

Emma thought for a second and licked her lips. “Addictive. Sweet. Like dessert.” Okay, maybe that second drink was a tad too much. 

The vampire nodded and finished off her drink. “Refill?” She offered once more, not knowing how to respond to the blonde’s honesty. She didn’t wait for an answer and took the blonde’s empty glass from the coffee table and headed straight for the cabinet next to her mahogany desk.

The shifter furrowed her brows and scrunched up her nose, the feeling was back. She decided this was the time to test her theory and she stood up, moving all the way across the room to where the vampire was in less than a second. 

She was a couple of steps behind the brunette but that was not close enough, with the feeling now gone again she couldn’t help herself. She wanted to be as near as the brunette as possible, all over her if she could. 

Regina had felt Emma come closer but not this close, when she turned around she found herself almost toe to toe with the taller woman. 

She felt something pooling in her core having the woman so close she could count the freckles on her nose. She took a step to the side so she could lean back against her desk to put some distance between them since she couldn’t think clearly, glasses forgotten. 

“What are you doing to me?” Emma half whispered and took a step following the brunette.

All Regina could do was stare into those green eyes that seemed to grow darker and force her own to stay brown. 

“You always feel so inevitable.” Emma said under her breath with a raspy voice; and for the first time in a long time, the vampire felt like the prey. It surprised her that she didn’t hate it when it came to the blonde. 

Brown eyes be damned, she let the inky black take over and as if on its own accord, the brunette’s pale hand that wasn’t grabbing the edge of the desk behind her snaked around Emma’s neck and pulled her in crashing their lips together.

They both moaned at the contact and any idea the blonde might have had about how the older woman would taste, was instantly shattered by the reality of it. 

It was so pure and sweet yet so dark and combined with the lingering traces of cider she was sure her legs would give out any second. With a low growl her eyes flashed golden as she called to her wolf to keep her upright and reached down to cup Regina’s perfectly round ass to lift her onto the desk, standing between her legs. 

There was nothing tender about their kiss, it was full of passion and need, hot and wet and breathy; both their inner demons begging to be let free to consume and possess. 

Marveling at how slim the brunette’s waist was she wrapped her arms around it and pressed their bodies impossibly closer, shuddering when the vampire answered by pulling the hair at the nape of her neck and sucking on her tongue making them both moan again. 

Growling once more when the need for air made Emma pull back, golden eyes locked into onyx black. Studying the woman’s face; from the pitch black eyes to red parted lips and completely extended fangs, she thought that in all her years she had never seen anything so beautiful. 

She slowly moved her hands so that each was on the woman’s hips, bunching them around the fabric of the dark dress. She felt as if her whole body was on fire.

Regina’s own sliding down the blonde’s neckline to her chest where she stopped and gave her a small push with her index finger hard enough to almost make her trip backwards if it wasn’t for her hold on the woman. 

For a moment she had thought that the brunette who was still silent, had not wanted the kiss but then figured that if that had been the case she could have easily thrown her across the room. 

She stood watching fascinated as the long fangs retracted and black slowly receded to chestnut brown, her own eyes going back to forest green, her wolf not satisfied with not marking the woman and making her theirs but effectively pushed back for the time being. 

“I should go.” The shifter said almost panting before her instincts took over and ended up jumping the vampire right then and there. 

Regina cleared her throat. “I don’t think you are in any condition to drive.” Her thick voice was not helping matters for the blonde at all. 

With all her willpower she managed to take a step back but without letting go just yet. “I think I could use a run and maybe I can get my bike tomorrow?” She asked in hopes she could see Regina again soon.

The stoic woman flattened the hand still on her chest against the blonde and nodded resulting in Emma grinning brightly at her. “I believe you can see yourself out, dear.” She said shortly but not unamicably. 

Emma nodded without losing her smile and finally put some needed space between them, walking backwards to the door. “I’ll text you to set up an hour.”

Regaining a bit of composure now that the blonde was a few feet away she smirked. “I’ve heard that before, detective.” Emma chuckled. 

“I promise.”

The vampire gave her a curt nod and watched as the wolf all but skipped to the front door, probably because of the excess of energy she had. 

Regina groaned feeling hungrier than ever, she was most definitely glad she had stocked her fridge to the brim with blood bags earlier in the week as she was sure this would not be an easy fix. Hopefully it would be enough to get her through until seeing the blonde again tomorrow. 

Said blonde was already shifted, running at full speed in all fours through the woods. Her whole body was vibrating and was sure she would not be able get any sleep throughout the night, but she didn’t care, she had never felt so alive. 

Howling, she decided she couldn’t wait to see the vampire again. 


	4. Chapter 3

Emma sat behind her desk biting the cap of her pen while she read a file over and over. This was the part she hated the most about her job. 

She loved field duty, the adrenaline when running after a suspect or finding and deciphering clues when trying to identify one, but paperwork? This, she hated. 

At some point she had delegated the task to one of the deputies but he had missed important information that, to be fair, only she knew. She had gotten in trouble for it and decided from then on no one would touch her paperwork but her. 

It didn’t help that her mind was somewhere else, namely a certain brunette who had yet to answer the text she had sent earlier. 

She gratefully looked up when Graham knocked on her open door. 

“You look miserable, sis.” He beamed at her and she rolled her eyes. 

“Tell that to your ugly face.” She threw a paper ball at him and he held up his hands, holding a file in one of them.

“Woah, I come bearing gifts.” The younger shifter handed over the file. “Suspect ID'd, we know where she is and all we gotta do is catch her. Thought you’d like to get out of here for a bit.” His smile grew. “But of course if you’d rather stay in and miserably finish all these paperwork…”

Emma glared at him but finished reading the file, Fury targeting humans, two bodies have been found and possible next victim identified. She had dealt with furies before and they have left her with a raging headache for days, she supposed that had to do with their ability to induce madness. But she knew that as long as she didn’t make eye contact she’d be fine. 

Before she could say anything though her phone buzzed on her desk and she almost fell from the swivel chair in her haste to get it. She ignored the weird look her brother was giving her but had to bite her lip to stop a grin from breaking out. 

Regina:  _ You can come pick up your death trap at 5, detective. Don’t be late.  _

__

She typed a quick reply and jumped to her feet and grabbed her jacket, shoving the file into Graham’s chest on her way out the door. “You are driving.”

“What’s with the mood change?” He smiled but looked quizzically at her, wondering if the text had anything to do with it. 

“I’m just happy for some fresh air. Oh! And we can get fries.” She threw over her shoulder making the scruffy man shake his head. 

* * *

“Ms. Fury should not give us much trouble, maybe a bit of a chase but it’s a change from what we’ve had these past weeks.” Graham said as he looked around the busy street from the car seat. 

She ignored him in favor of shoving her face with the snacks they’d picked up on the way. “This is so good.” Emma moaned and licked her thumb. 

He rolled his eyes. “Am I supposed to believe that you are the heir to a kingdom with those manners?”

She swallowed. “Listen, okay? This is the best part of stakeouts, the junk food. Plus, I have not had this deliciousness in so long.” Sighing, she threw another fry in her mouth. 

“A heart attack is what you’ll end up having.” He laughed. 

“We run miles and miles every single day, I think I’ll be fine.” She grinned and stole one of his fries, which caused him to throw a dirty napkin at her. 

Even though they were hundreds of years old, they still acted like kids whenever they had the chance to. In their line of work and throughout their lives they have faced death one too many times and having lived so long, they tried to find joy in the little things whenever they could. They were also very close, as Emma had taken him and Ruby as her mentees when they first joined the pack.

She didn’t care that they didn’t share the same blood, they were her little siblings and she treated them as such. Although she considered the rest of the pack her family as well, she had a special connection with those two. 

Graham suddenly stopped what he was doing to sniff the air and turned on his seat looking around. “That’s our mark.” He said when he spotted a woman dressed entirely in dark pink, with long, wavy dark hair who seemed to be dragging behind a middle aged woman, she smelled human and that fit the suspect’s profile. 

The women exited through the back door of a candle shop and Emma shook her head, most likely the poor woman was just buying some candles and instead she ended up being a potential meal for the fury. The human looked to be fidgety and out of sorts, her eyes unfocused. Maybe they were too late. 

The shifters exited the undercover van and Emma secured a handgun to her holster, usually she didn’t have the need for it but one could never be too cautious. “Okay, they seem to be heading down that abandoned neighborhood, we should be able to corner them before they make it to the grove.”

He nodded and they started a paced walk behind the pair. The fury had yet to spot them but the blonde human was moving all around as if she was being pulled forward, she was not resisting per se but Emma assumed she didn’t have the ability to. 

The fury was getting frustrated and was also regretting doing this in broad daylight. She gave the human a tug and when she stumbled forward she thought it’d be best to kill her then and there. Looking around she saw the street was fairly empty but when she turned and grabbed the woman’s face ready to melt her brain something caught her eye. 

A man and a woman she had not seen before were walking in her direction, their pace was too fast for them to be simply window shopping, she grew suspicious and studied her options. Still looking at the pair she placed her hands on the human’s shoulders forcefully and in a second the guy reached behind him drawing a weapon, getting closer. 

She swore and threw the blonde woman to the main street where she fell on her back and started squirming. 

“Shit.” Emma groaned. “You get the human, make sure she is okay, I’ll get the fury.” Without waiting for a response from her brother she broke into a sprint behind the brunette, which led her to a dead end alley.  _ She has to be around here. _

__

The place smelled like trash and mold so it was hard to focus on one scent but she didn’t think twice about ducking when the little hairs on her neck stood to attention. 

Wailing, the brunette dropped the scrap of metal she was about to use to hit Emma on the head, her eyes a swirling orange.  _ Don’t look into her eyes. _

__

Emma took advantage of her crouched position and kicked the woman’s feet from under her, once on her back on the floor she kicked the shifter in the stomach causing her to stumble. 

The blonde growled and her eyes flashed golden, her canines extending. She used her strength to pin the flailing woman down to the floor but hissed when long black nails managed to scratch her shoulder, ripping the fabric of her jacket and cutting her skin. “Damn it.”

For a moment the woman thought the distraction would help her escape or at least get her to look at the officer in the eyes, but next thing she knew her chest was hitting the concrete and she was facing down, the shifter sitting on her back already cuffing her. 

“I don’t know what it is that you thought would happen but you don’t go around killing people and expect you won’t get caught. Rest assured the Council will hear about this.” She said standing up with a grunt and pulling the woman up with her, eyes back to green and canines retracted. 

The fury laughed. “The Council is a joke. This place is a joke.” She hissed. “The peace will not last for long and you and your kind will all be exterminated. You go around like dogs following orders and that will get you nowhere despite what you all think.”

Emma rolled her eyes in annoyance and started walking towards the van ignoring the woman; it was not the first or the last creature with the mentality that what they were doing was a sham and because some of them came from ‘royal’ families it was okay to do as they pleased and would not suffer the consequences for their actions. 

But that’s why she did what she did, to keep a semblance of order and to try to make everyone as happy as possible. 

Not that  _ she _ was happy right then, with a sore and bleeding shoulder, but so be it for the greater good. 

“You okay, Ems?” Graham asked as she came into view with the fury and saw the torn jacket. 

“Just a scratch, it’ll heal in no time.” She could already feel the gash closing so nothing to worry about. “Everything okay over there?”

Graham nodded. “The human is on her way to the hospital for a psych consult, if it’s not too bad, the fairies might be able to help.” Taking over he grabbed the fury by the arm and shoved her inside the van. 

Before she could say anything her phone buzzed and bit the inside of her cheek when she read the short message. “Hey, you got this?” She nodded to the van. “I have to go take care of something but I’ll come back to the station to finish the paperwork later.”

“I- sure.” Brown thick brows furrowed. “You good?”

“Yes, just something I forgot to do.” Patting his arm she half smiled before walking to the grove they had spotted earlier and undressed, she shifted and broke into a run through the woods. 

This was her second home and she knew the forest like the palm of her hand, this being the fastest way to move around and it was also way more discreet than a giant wolf running on the streets of the Capital. 

It was mere minutes before she came to a stop near the vaguely familiar clearing that led to the ‘ _ uptown’  _ part of the Capital. Dropping the clothes she had been carrying with her in her mouth to the ground she sniffed and shifted, once in human form she stretched and studied her injured arm, angry red lines marred her pale skin but she wasn’t in pain anymore and she figured the scars would be completely gone in a few hours. 

Clothes on and hair tamed, she checked the time on her phone and she smiled, she was a few minutes early so she decided to stroll out of the clearing and down the streets on her way to her destination. 

The closer she got, the harder it was to contain her excitement. Her wolf would most definitely be panting and shaking its tail, and on her part she felt like she would start vibrating any second, when her senses caught a whiff of the scent she had been literally dreaming of, it was all she could do but force herself not to run towards it. She would keep her chill. She could do that, right?

Taking a deep breath to calm herself she entered the driveway stopping dead in her tracks when she looked up and saw Regina standing on the porch looking directly at her, as if she had been waiting for her to arrive. 

The brunette seemed to be about to take a step forward but before Emma could blink the vampire was in front of her. Taking her in she was sure she was going to explode. “Hi.” She managed to exhale. 

“Hello, dear.” The brunette said with her husky voice and folding her arms across her chest. “Your promptness is much appreciated.”

Emma cleared her throat. “Well you made it clear in your text that I shouldn’t be late.” She fiddled with her fingers not knowing what else to do with her hands; she just wanted to touch the woman before her. It’s not as if they hadn’t been making out less than twenty-four hours ago.  _ You are being awkward, Emma.  _

__

Regina gave her a once-over. “I do despise tardiness.” The blonde swallowed. “Speaking of which, I have a meeting to get to so if you please-“ She gestured to Emma’s black and obnoxious yellow bike parked right behind her black car. 

Chuckling the blonde placed a hand on the leather seat. “I’m sure you would have been perfectly capable of moving it out of the way with your pinky finger if you had wanted to.”

“Well, heavens know where the thing has been so I decided not to take the chance of getting filth on me.”

Emma smiled when she identified the vampire’s attempt at nonchalance as a way to hide what she was feeling, she didn’t know what  _ that _ was, but she had a feeling that whatever it was, it resembled her own emotions.

Pursing her lips the brunette looked at her expectantly and Emma’s confidence soared. “I’ll get out of your way, then. Wouldn’t want you to be late.” 

“That wouldn’t be ideal, no.” Emma rounded her bike getting closer to the woman. “Alright then.” Regina turned and stood, hand on the car door handle when she felt the warmth coming from the body that was now behind her. 

“You smell even better than yesterday.” Emma breathed and Regina closed her eyes, her hand sliding off the handle when a warm hand snaked its way over her right hip. 

“I was wondering when you would cave.” A blonde brow rose and somehow she  _ knew, _ but before Emma could ask she spoke. “You forget I can sense your heartbeat.” She placed the hand that had been on the handle atop Emma’s. 

“What can I say? You are irresistible.” She said against the shell of Regina’s ear. 

“Careful, detective. One might say you sound like you missed me.” 

There was a pause and the shifter inched away from her. “What if I did?”

This made brown eyes snap open and she turned around, still in the blonde’s embrace, her back pressed to her car. She searched for the lie in those green orbs but was unable to find one and just like the previous evening she pulled the younger woman closer and kissed her hard, making her moan deeply into her mouth. 

It only took a second for Emma to register what was happening but in no time she had both hands over a slim waist and pushed her body harder into the vampire’s as if there was no such thing as close enough. 

Although Regina was wearing high, fuck-me heels, she was still about two inches shorter than Emma and that didn’t work for what she wanted to do in the position they were in, so she lifted her like she weighted nothing, not unlike the night before, but this time the brunette wrapped her legs around the strong waist which allowed the blonde’s hands to roughly explore the brunette’s body over her dress.

Regina was about to protest when the blonde broke the kiss, but instead hissed when she felt soft open-mouthed kisses on her neck, her hands tangling in silk-like golden locks. 

Pink lips went up to her jaw where she nipped the skin and then back to those sinful ruby red lips. Slowing the kiss down she felt cold hands sliding from her neck down to her shoulders and pulled back, opening her eyes to lock into dark chocolate orbs.  _ Gods, you are beautiful. _

__

Said brown eyes looked away first and Emma hummed when she felt cold fingers on her shoulder’s bare skin. “Looks like you need new clothes, detective.”  _ If the vampire herself didn’t kill her, that raspy voice would. _

The shifter looked down to where the fury had slashed her clothes and realized she indeed would have to throw both the jacket and the shirt away. She chuckled. “Seems like I do.” Eyes finding each other again they stayed like that for a few seconds until Emma felt toned legs loosening their grip, her hands going back to a slim waist to help the woman to her feet.

“I do have to go.”

“I know.” Sighing, she couldn’t help but let her hands wander up the brunette’s body again, one hand cupping the marble-like jaw and her thumb caressing a plump lower lip. Regina took the chance to nip the tip of it with her fang; not hard enough to break the skin but hard enough to leave a small dent. Emma’s breath caught in her throat and she had to step back, arms dropping to her sides before she decided she wouldn’t let the vampire go anywhere. “You should get going then.”

The brunette smirked. “I’m still waiting for you to move your death trap.”

“Right.” The shifter hopped on her bike and the vampire went to open the car door. “I’ll see you around?”

Regina just smiled and got in her car. “I’ll take that as a yes.” Was the last thing she heard before closing the door and turning the engine on. 

Emma shook her head and made her way out of the driveway waiting for the woman to do the same and started her drive to her destination. She had to force herself not to follow behind, it seemed that the more time they spent together the harder it became for her to stay away.

Hopefully finishing her paperwork would make her think of something else. 

* * *

As soon as she sat on her chair Graham was at her door frowning. “You stink.”

She blinked. “I’m sorry, would you like to try that again?” 

“I- seriously, Em. Why do you smell like  _ them? _ ”

_ Right.  _ Since for some reason Regina didn’t smell like other vampires to her, she forgot that to others she might. Meaning she most likely had vampire smell all over her.

“I left my bike around their area last night and I just went to pick it up. That must be it.”

That was a reasonable explanation, he thought. If it weren’t for the fact that this wasn’t the first time his sister had come into the precinct smelling like them, he would not have thought twice about it. 

He had no reasons not to trust her but he decided he’d keep an eye out nevertheless. 

“Yeah, that must be it.” He handed her the files from earlier. “Anyway, I finished my part so they are all yours.” He gave her a lopsided smile when she groaned. 

“I’ll be here all night, won’t I?” She pointed at her pile of unfinished paperwork. 

He laughed. “You better get your ass working, sis.”

“I hate you.”

“I hate you back. Let me know if you need anything, boss.” He winked at her and left the office closing the door behind him. 

She felt like hours had passed but in reality it had only been about forty-five minutes since she’d started. Thankfully she had managed to finish her most relevant cases and now she could move to those that didn't require much detail, although the pile for those was much larger. 

Time, for someone like her who had thousands of years ahead, was not something she cared much about; but she still felt like sitting on a desk ticking boxes and making notes was time she could spend doing other things. 

Before she could think of the plethora of things she would rather be doing instead, her phone vibrated. 

Regina:  _ What are we doing? _

Her face broke into a huge smile, she was not expecting for the other woman to contact her first. 

Emma: I'm doing paperwork. Weren't you in a meeting? 

Regina:  _ Still am. And that is not what I meant, detective.  _

Emma: What did you mean, then? 

Regina:…

Regina:  _ Us, Emma. You and I. What are we doing? With the frolicking around situation.  _

Emma: Frolicking? 

Regina:  _ Be serious.  _

Emma: Okay, sorry. I don't know, Regina. What are we doing? 

Regina:  _ That is my question precisely.  _

The blonde sighed, that was something she asked herself since the moment at the ceremony when she had decided to follow the brunette outside. 

Emma: Well, I like you and I'm inclined to say you like me too. Can't we just work with that?

Regina:  _ I do not believe it is that simple.  _

Emma: It's not but this is not a conversation we should have through text. 

Regina:  _ I concur. Come over. _

Emma: Now? 

Regina:  _ No, dear. I will let you know when I'm done with my meetings for the day.  _

Emma: Oh, right. Sure. 

Regina:  _ You should get some work done as well ;) _

_ Did- did she just use a winky face? _

Emma: Stop distracting me then. 

Regina:  _ Mhm. Talk later? _

Emma: Can't wait :) 

She exhaled heavily and slumped down on her chair resting her head against its back. There was no way she could focus on her paperwork now. She was both dreading the conversation they would have and at the same time she wanted to see the woman as soon as possible. 

Her feelings about the vampire were all over the place and she couldn't help but think about the woman's words earlier nor could she explain it but she  _ missed _ the brunette, she missed having her close and the heated glances she would throw her way. 

_ Emma you've officially lost it. _

Finishing paperwork was the last thing on her mind but she figured that she had time to kill while she waited for Regina's instructions.  _ Since when do you follow instructions? If your Alphas could see you now.  _ She shook the nagging thoughts away when she sensed her wolf just about ready to leave everything behind and run to the brunette. 

_ Focus. We'll see her soon.  _

With her wolf barely tamed she got back to work, maybe this was the push she needed to stop procrastinating. 

And indeed the moment she got the text informing her that the vampire was on her way home, she was signing her name on the last report of the pile. 

Smiling she organized her desk and hopped off her chair, she was about to grab her jacket but remembered the tears it had from earlier and decided to leave it. She had already changed her shirt for a spare one and deemed she was presentable enough to leave. 

The ride across the Capital was smooth, it was well after dark and the streets were mostly empty. A few minutes later she was already pulling her bike into the familiar driveway and parking behind the black car. It was still warm so Regina must have arrived not long ago. 

She removed her helmet, letting golden waves fall down her back and left it hanging from the handlebar. She made her way to the entrance but before she could raise her hand to knock the door opened. 

“Detective.”

“Regina.” She almost shivered when vanilla and plums overcame her senses. 

The brunette stepped aside to let Emma in and then closed the door behind them, this time guiding the younger woman to the living room mainly to have a different space where they could talk instead of getting distracted with thoughts of what had transpired the night before in her study. 

“Drink?” She pointed to the side table towards a smaller decanter than the one she had seen the previous evening. 

The shifter nodded. “Do you have one of those in every room?” She said enjoying the view as Regina gave her back to her and poured their glasses.

"Almost every room. Sometimes alcohol is the only way to cope with living so long." The smirk could be heard in her voice before she turned around. 

Taking the offered glass she sipped her drink watching intently as Regina did the same. "Yeah, I get that." 

"Shall we, dear?" Regina asked after a few seconds of staring at each other and took a seat on the sofa waiting for the blonde to join her. 

Unsure of where to sit she opted for one of the two armchairs in front of the brunette and sighed, she knew that for the conversation they were about to have it would be best to focus as much as possible and she could not do that whenever she was too close to the older woman. "So, what do you want to talk about?" She leaned forward resting her elbows on her knees. 

The vampire rested her own arm on the backrest holding her head in her open palm. "What are we doing, Emma? Where are we going with this?" She sighed. "You know as much as I do that relationships between our kind are not well seen, let alone between our kingdoms." The blonde's grin could light up the whole room on its own. "Are you finding this funny?"

"No." She said without losing her smile. "You've thought about having a relationship with me?"

"I- No. I don't know. Maybe? What is it that we are doing then with the kissing and the flirting and-" She sighed and ran her hand through her silky hair, Emma's eyes following her every movement.

"And?"

"I don't know, Emma. I can't put into words what I feel when I am around you and much less what I feel when I am  _ not _ around you."

The blonde took a large sip of her drink and sat back. "Yeah, that sounds kinda relationship-y." She tried to joke but could sense the vampire's frustration and decided to try a different approach. "Look, I don't think I could label whatever this is. All I know is that- for starters I am insanely attracted to you." She smiled at the brunette's smirk. "I feel this pull towards you I can't explain, I just want to be close and when I'm not I feel- gods I sound crazy- but like something is missing? I am in no way declaring my undying love to you but I would like to explore whatever this is, if you'd be interested of course."

Regina studied her for a moment. "Emma, everything about this is wrong, a bad idea. What about the kingdoms? Our families? What about the people? My kind is loathed by almost everyone while yours is worshipped. No one will accept whatever comes out of this, not to mention Mother still wants you dead."

The blonde stood up and placed her glass on the coffee table before taking a seat next to the vampire. "I'm not saying that we need to go out for a stroll and hold hands out there, just that maybe we could work something out? Maybe meet here or somewhere else? We'll deal with things as they happen and no one needs to know what we do behind closed doors, right? Not that anything is happening but you get my point."

"It's not that simple." 

"If you are saying that because of who we are, Regina there is no such thing as good and evil."

"Of course you would say that." She finished the contents of her glass in one go appreciating the sting going down her very dry throat. 

"I mean it, why do you say your kind is evil? Because of how many you've killed? I am pretty sure our body count is very similar if not the same. It's probably just the way they all go about the subject that this whole divide was created." 

Regina rolled her eyes. 

"And I have eyes on your mother, she seems to be calm for now. Or as calm as Cora gets." She tried to smile but Regina kept her tense stance. "I know that if we decide to give whatever this is a shot it won't be without it's complications, but I would like to try." Emma thought about reaching out for the pale hand resting on the brunette's leg but something told her that wasn't the best course of action. "The question is, would you?"

Regina looked intently at her for a moment before she stood up abruptly and made her way to the burning fireplace and watched the flames dance. "Emma." She breathed out, so to speak. "I don't know how long I can keep doing this." It was barely audible but the wolf heard her. 

Standing up, Emma made her own way across the room. "Doing what?"

The brunette turned her head slowly to look at her, eyes dark and conflicted. "I-" She looked down at pink lips and then back up into green eyes. "There is something I've been having a hard time with since that first night we met and I am unsure of how long I can deny it to myself." 

Emma stepped closer and ran the back of her index finger down the vampire's bare arm without breaking eye contact. "Anything I can help with?" She smiled that lopsided smile that brought out her dimples and the brunette thought for a second that she had shivered. 

_ Here goes nothing.  _ "I seem to be having a very strong urge to bite you." 

Green eyes widened like saucers and her hand stopped moving, arm dropping to her side. "W- what?"

Regina wrapped one arm around her own midsection, her free hand pinched the bridge of her nose for a second before she crossed both arms over her chest. "I don't know what it is about you but no matter how much I feed prior to our encounters I always feel practically starved when you are around." She scoffed. "I know how that sounds but after going over it for days in my head, I came up with the theory that this is one solution to my predicament. The other would be staying completely away from you and I would understand if that is what you decide, after all if a vampire I barely know came to me and told me what I just told you I would either run for the hills or kill them in the spot so-"

"Regina." Emma couldn't help but smile at the woman's ranting. "Stop."

"Stop what?"

"Okay" 

"Okay what, Emma?" Brown eyes stared pointedly at the blonde. 

"I want to do it." Regina blinked. "I wouldn't mind you- um- feeding? From me." She rubbed the back of her neck when the vampire let out a humorless laugh. 

"You can't be serious." She asked. 

"I am though." It was brown eyes' turn to widen. 

"Emma-"

"I mean it." She grabbed Regina's hand, enjoying the contrast of temperature against her own and resting her forehead against the vampire's. "Plus I'm not keen on the idea of staying away."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Emma reassured and after a beat she spoke again. "So, how are we doing this?"

Regina stepped back to look into the shifter's eyes. "What? Now?"

"Well, I mean are you not uh- hungry?"

"Emma, that's not- I mentioned before that feeding directly from someone is -intimate- and not something to be taken lightly."

The blonde chuckled. "Trust me, I am not taking anything lightly." If she was being honest with herself she didn't even know why she was doing this. All she knew was that from the moment the idea had entered her mind she’d been sold, she couldn't think of anything else she wanted more than for the woman to feed off of her. "I would say that having your tongue in my mouth is pretty intimate too." She smirked but her heartbeat was betraying her nerves. Or was it excitement? 

A dark eyebrow rose. "Only if you are sure."

Emma nodded making her golden waves bounce slightly. 

"Alright, would you like to sit down?" 

"I think I'm good." She was certain she would not be able to sit still even if she wanted to, so she opted for standing. It couldn't be that bad anyway, right?

"As you wish, dear." Back to her confident self, it was Regina's turn to smirk. 

The blonde felt the shift in the vampire before she actually saw it, this was not the same Regina she had been flirting with since that first night, the proper daughter of Queen Cora with the impossibly high etiquette standards, this Regina was darker, a seductress drawing her prey in. 

Emma felt the little hairs at the back of her neck stand to attention when the woman stood straighter and slowly stepped closer, bodies touching and eyes never leaving her own. A perfectly manicured finger reached out to touch her throat and she had to restrain herself from whimpering. 

Regina's smirk slowly turned into a grin, as emerald eyes fixated on her elongating fangs and red lips. "Will it hurt?" She swallowed. 

"Only if you move too much, dear." She stated simply and used both hands to grab the blonde's and place them on her own hips. "In case you need to hold on to something." She offered as an explanation just before her eyes turned completely black. 

"Oh." Was the only thing she could say when the brunette pulled her hair lightly to grant her neck more access. She didn't know what she’d been expecting but the woman giving her neck open mouthed kisses was not it, she had thought the vampire would get right down to business, not that she was complaining. 

The kisses slowed down and she could feel the tip of pointy teeth scratching her skin which made her pull the woman closer and after a moment all contact left her for a couple of seconds before she felt what she could only describe as needles piercing her skin. What she wasn't ready for was the pleasure she felt the deeper they sunk into her neck, she sensed her eyes changing color and a low growl crawling up her throat which made Regina pull her hair harder. 

When her blood started leaving her body she understood what the vampire had meant, her knees buckled and she felt like she was standing on jelly, her grip around narrow hips tightened when she knew her legs were about to give out but Regina wrapped the arm that wasn't tangled in her hair around her lower back to help her stay upright. 

Her own hand moved up and fisted into silky locks, she needed something to ground her, but as soon as it had started Regina pulled back with a hum and scraped her fangs along her neck, making the blonde moan loudly. The brunette licked where Emma assumed her puncture wounds were and then lifted her head to look at her. 

Previously black eyes were now hooded and dark red, making her almost come in the spot. She whimpered at the sight of blood red lips, quite literally, and the small trail of blood making its way to a less pale chin. If her mind hadn't been so fuzzy she would have found it appalling that she thought the sight was so erotic. 

But all she could think of was cleaning it with her tongue and so she did, inhaling sharply when she felt one of the stocking-clad legs finding purchase between her own weak ones. 

Regina hummed and the sound drove her forward to kiss the woman roughly, nipping at her red lower lip and enjoying the sounds Regina made as she grinded her leg between her thighs, the vampire's hands now clawing the blonde's back. 

There were no words after that, the only sounds were of their ragged breathing and panting as they started pulling at each other's clothes. Emma, finding her footing once more, backed the woman into a wall and pressed her mouth against Regina's into another searing kiss. Fingers slipping up under the now torn dress to the juncture of her slick thighs made the vampire groan into her mouth, the sound only encouraging her to break away and kiss the way down her neck. 

The vampire fisted her hair once more and not so gently shoved her further south until Emma’s knees hit the floor, obviously feeding from her had affected Regina as well. 

Smiling, she pushed the hem of the black dress up to the brunette's hips and ripped her already ruined lace underwear. The first touch of Emma's tongue made the vampire's head fall back harshly to the wall and a moan to rip from her throat. 

Soon enough two fingers joined said tongue and all Regina could do was grind against the blonde's sinful mouth, canting her hips forward and tightening her grip on blonde locks. 

Moments later she was crying out the wolf's name as she came down from her high and pushed the head between her legs back. Opening her eyes, she looked down to the blonde's green ones looking straight back at her with a happy smile, she couldn't help but think of a puppy who was just given a treat.  _ How fitting.  _

A smirk slowly adorned her face and swiftly pulled the woman up, in a second she changed their positions and with her silkiest voice she whispered to the blonde. "Let's take this upstairs."

They didn't make it upstairs until hours later. 

  
  
  


There were two things she registered as soon as she opened her brown eyes that morning, the first one that she couldn't remember the last time she had actually slept so soundly for more than two hours and based on the amount of light coming from between her curtains, she had indeed slept for more than that. 

The second was that she was hot, as in almost sweating hot. In her thousand plus years of life, so to speak, the closest she had been to feeling this hot was back when she had been alive during the summer and when one of the surrounding villages back in the Dark Kingdom had caught fire and she’d helped the people escape. She couldn't say that she had missed the feeling but had to admit that the change felt nice for once. 

Looking down she noticed that her sateen sheets were bunched up on the floor and decided to check what was the cause of the change in temperature. She had of course thought about the fact that Emma had an overall higher temperature than most but so far it had not been this intense. Maybe when asleep it's different? But when she turned around she was not facing Emma at all. Or well technically she was, just not in the shape she had become accustomed to seeing the blonde. 

Next to her was a sleeping wolf that could easily measure at least 9ft tall in the position it was in. Its stretched hind legs and tail were hanging off the mattress, its front legs and massive paws were bent and close to her chest and her head, that was at least twice the size of Regina's, was right next to her own. 

The brunette swallowed and raised her upper body so she could admire the almost white fur, she could tell it was still yellow, but so pale it resembled the snow. Her nose was a mixture of dark brown and black and since her mouth was partly open she could see her canines were almost as long as her fingers. 

Although she didn't feel fear at having them so close to her own head, she could see why the wolves were so respected in all the lands, she could clearly picture those teeth shredding flesh apart if needed and by the sheer size of the wolf sleeping soundly next to her, she imagined there wasn't much that could take them down. 

Regina had to admit she’d never had any interest in their kind, she always saw them as dogs and nothing else, at least until Emma, but she was awed by the creature on her bed. She wondered if her fur was as warm as she was feeling or if it was even hotter. Feeling fuller than ever, she could still sense the warmth seeping through her veins, warming her entire body. It felt nice. Blood bags were always refrigerated so she was used to the coolness fueling her. 

As these thoughts filled her mind her hand slowly reached out but before it made contact with the wolf, two golden eyes snapped open and held her stare for a few seconds. She could see Emma's personality taking over and in her haste of getting up she fell off the bed with a very loud thud. The wolf was definitely not a graceful creature. 

"Emma?" She asked amused but with a hint of concern lacing her voice. 

The response was a low growl that slowly turned into a groan and moments later she could see the bright yellow mop of hair and two green eyes peeking up at her from the side of the mattress. 

The blonde crawled up the bed and smiled at the image of the vampire stark naked trying to suppress her laughter. "Morning." Her smile widened as she hovered over the brunette and kissed her sweetly. 

Regina laid back down as she now had the blonde over her. "Morning, dear."

"You are warm." The blonde mused out loud. "Sleep well?"

The vampire hummed and kissed the blonde back, she smirked. "Someone obviously did."

Emma chuckled. "Yeah, I sometimes shift in my sleep. Especially when I'm exhausted." She wiggled her eyebrows earning a smack to her side. 

She was about to mock protest but her stomach beat her to it, then she remembered that she hadn't eaten anything since lunch the day before, she had been otherwise  _ preoccupied _ being fed on. 

Flopping to her side and then rolling onto her back, she turned her head to face the brunette. "Want to have breakfast?" 

Regina smiled but shook her head. "I'm good, thank you." Her gaze then turned guilty. "I don't have any food in the house, though. Just- blood bags." She added as an afterthought. 

"That's-" Her stomach interrupted her again and she rolled her eyes at herself. Apparently the mix of shifting, last night's -and early morning- activities plus having been fed on by the vampire had done a number on her. "An issue." She contemplated what to do for a few seconds, she didn't want to go anywhere but both her and her wolf needed food before she got moody and her wolf took over. "I might have to go get something to eat. Maybe go for a run later, but I'll be back. If you don't mind." She bit the inside of her cheek, she didn't want to sound presumptuous but hoped the woman shared the feeling of wanting to be close. 

"Wasn't last night enough?" Regina joked but her smile faded when she saw green eyes staring intently into her own. 

"Never." The blonde said softly but confidently, which made Regina swallow from the honesty behind those words. She wasn't entirely sure about what she was feeling but she knew it was strong and after last night, she knew things between them had shifted drastically. She just couldn't decide if it was a good or bad thing just yet. She just nodded. 

To that Emma answered with her dimpled smile and scooted closer so she could kiss the woman soundly. 

After a moment she jumped out the bed and started picking up her discarded pieces of clothing from the floor, looking over to the bed where Regina was looking back at her with soft eyes, she knew the vampire's mind was going a mile a minute but she just smiled at her. "See you later?" 

Regina nodded again and with that she left the room, getting the rest of her things from the living room. She couldn't stop bouncing, she was giddy and she felt every fiber of her being vibrating. 

She felt like she was floating on cloud nine and as she closed the door behind her she completely ignored the very faint voice in the back of her head that hoped she wouldn't crash. 


	5. Chapter 4

Not much changed after that but at the same time, a lot did. 

Emma came over to the mansion almost everyday after work and they would talk about everything and nothing they had not covered the night before. Then they would stop talking and engage in much more strenuous activities. 

Regina had to admit, although not out loud, that she could not get enough of the other woman. The way she appeared shy with her bright green eyes and trademark dimples and then took control like it was nobody's business. 

And boy, did she take control of her body. She has had a fair amount of partners in her life but for some reason she responded to the blonde in a way she had never responded to anyone else before.

She was attuned to the blonde's every movement and touch, to the way her warm breath hit her skin when she whispered something in her ear, and that thing she did with her claws when her most primal side made an appearance. 

Just thinking about it brought that one of-a-kind tingly feeling down her spine. 

That was, in her opinion, the biggest change she has faced since Emma came into her life. She was  _ feeling _ and not only emotions. Emotions are something that she felt more intensely than most, she even had the luxury of turning them off whenever she deemed they clouded her judgement, but fortunately she hadn't had to do it in centuries.

But Emma,  _ Emma _ made her feel warm and breathless and then cold when she was gone. She got antsy when she didn't see the wolf for days and she worried. Regina Mills  _ worried _ about if the stubborn blonde was okay. She couldn't remember the last time she had worried about someone else's well being that wasn't her dad’s. And even then-

But Emma White -Swan- kept her on her toes, the blonde had even managed to make her blush once and she was now a hundred percent sure that the shifter had made her shiver a few times at the least. She felt more alive than she had in centuries and she didn't know what to make of it, but what she did know was that she didn't want to give it up.

A knock on the front door brought her back from her thoughts, there was only one person who came over, ever. Perfectly sculpted eyebrows furrowed because Emma had taken it up to enter through her back door which she now conveniently left unlocked at all times. 

Also, the sun was still out and the blonde usually didn't make an appearance until it was well set. Not that she minded. "You are here early." She mused out loud before opening the door, but the woman at the other side was not who she had expected. That explained the lack of the magnetic feeling she experienced whenever the wolf was nearby. "Zelena, what are you doing here?" 

"Well, hello to you too little sis." The greeting made Regina roll her eyes. "Were you expecting company?"

"Not particularly, no. But you still haven't answered my question."

"Why, is the idea that I would like to spend some time with my sister so appalling?" The redhead said as she breezed past the brunette whose eyes squinted in suspicion after the older vampire and closed the door behind her. 

"Zelena, in the past millennia I can count with one hand how many times you've willingly spent time with me and I have a feeling this is not one of those times. Which can only mean that you are here to talk about-"

"Reggie she is driving me insane."

"Mother-" She said as the other vampire flopped herself onto the white couch, and the brunette couldn't help but think of the last time that piece of furniture had been used -and abused- by her and the blonde. 

Emma had been needier than usual that day and as soon as she’d let herself in and spotted the older woman casually sitting cross legged on said couch and sipping her drink, she had straddled her and ripped her clothes off. Flashes of her sitting on the blonde's lap and riding four of her fingers invaded her mind. 

"Hello? Earth to Regina."

"Yes, Zelena. What did mother do now?" 

"It's what she's not doing. She is back home taking some sort of vacation, I don't know and she’s making me take care of her unfinished business. I haven't the slightest idea why she didn't ask you."

The brunette just hummed in response. 

Not that the vampire let her reply anyway as she continued to complain about the things Mother had left her in charge of. Zelena hated having any kind of responsibility and she avoided it like the plague, she was used to finding partners that would do absolutely everything for her and she tended to get bored easily. 

It is one of the reasons they had so many disagreements, while Regina had worked hard for everything she owned and everything she was, the blue-eyed woman expected for everything to be handed over in a gold platter. 

She supposed that the love-hate relationship they had was part of their very dysfunctional family dynamic. Zee had been the one to be there for her when she was first turned, she had taught her how to control herself and keep her impulses in check, all the things you'd expect from an older sister. 

"Anyway, I'm starving. The drive here was utterly overtiring. Do you keep any bags around here?" She looked around as if food would appear out of thin air and Regina rolled her eyes again knowing her sister wouldn't move a finger to get anything, standing up from where she was and in a fraction of a second she went to the kitchen and came back, throwing a blood bag on the woman's lap. "No glass or anything? My, such poor service." She wasted no time extending her fangs and drinking directly from the bag. 

The brunette found herself frowning again, the smell of blood making her mouth feel dry, only not for  _ it  _ but for Emma, in fact, she’d just realized that since that first time she fed from the blonde she hadn't been hungry at all. Until now. But now all she wanted was to feed from the blonde, her fridge still fully stocked with blood bags didn't appeal to her at all.  _ How peculiar. _

"Do you want some?" Zelena asked her, still with the bag in her mouth and Regina shook her head, clearing it from thoughts of biting the shifter again and maybe engaging in some other activities. "You sure? Because you've been eyeing it for a while."

"I was thinking about something, I am not hungry. Thank you."

The redhead set the empty bag on the coffee table and turned to face her sister. "Okay, what is it?"

"What is what?"

"Don't play coy, sis. You are acting odd. You look-  _ warm _ and happy I'd dare say."

"I do not know what you might be referring to." She said in a tone that made Zelena pause and held her hands up. 

"Alright, if you don't want to tell me, that's fine. I know better than to push you." Her gaze turned into a soft one. "But let me just say that it suits you."

Brown eyes met blue and all they found was sincerity in her sister's tone. "Thank you."

A few moments later the taller woman stood up. "Well, it's been a pleasure but I need to get going. Thank you for feeding me."

Regina scoffed, Zelena never changed. "I'll see you around I suppose."

The vampire gave her a dazzling pointy smile. "That you will. Ta-ta sis." And in a second she was gone. 

Regina shook her head and retired to her library to finish some work. She couldn't help but think that she did indeed feel happy for the first time in a while. 

* * *

  
  
  


Far away from the upper side of the Capital, Emma and Ruby were having a similar conversation. 

Both women shifted and Ruby pushed Emma off of her. "What has gotten into you?" 

Emma gave her a smug smile. "Whaddya mean?"

"What do you mean what do I mean? Since when are you faster than me? And you are glowing and being weird." She said from where she was lying on the forest's ground completely naked, taking Emma's hand to help her up. "Your scent is also different. You are-" She sniffed the air. "Sweeter."

"What are you even saying, Red. I'm faster and stronger because I'm the best." She wiggled her eyebrows, not minding at all her own state of nakedness in front of her sister. "And I don't know, scents change with age, no?"

The brunette regarded her for a few seconds. "Uh-huh. If I didn't know better-" She tilted her head. "I would say that you have imprinted on someone."

Emma's eyes widened like saucers and she then burst out laughing, she wasn't sure if it was a you-are-out-of-your-mind laugh or a nervous laugh because until now the thought had not crossed her mind. 

That prompted a genuine smile from Ruby but she was still looking at her contemplatively. After the blonde caught her breath, she added. "Or maybe not, I don't know but what I do know is that I love you and that you deserve to be happy. Especially after-" She left it at that, there was no need to bring back the subject. 

The blonde hummed. "You are talking nonsense, Rubes. But I love you too. Now, let me prove to you that I am also a better hunter than you." With that her smile was back on her face and she ran, jumping and shifting mid air into her huge almost white wolf. Ruby just shook her head and ran after her. "In your dreams, little duckling." She said as she also shifted into her own massive light brown wolf, sprinting behind the beta. 

  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  


Regina was looking out the balcony of her bedroom, it was a nice night out with clear skies and she took the moment to look at the stars shining in the dark purple sky. 

She smiled when she sensed Emma entering the house, it had been a couple days since the blonde had come over as she had been working on a case, and the intrusion was more than welcome. 

She half turned around when she felt the shifter standing by her door and bit the inside of her cheek to stop her face from breaking into a grin when she saw those green eyes shining in excitement to see her. 

"I'll greet you properly in a second but I'm all -yucky- do you mind if I change first?" 

"You know where everything is, dear." She nodded towards the ensuite bathroom and turned once more to the sky when she felt a crack of energy behind her. She slowly turned to face the woman but instead found herself face to face with the stretching wolf she was becoming familiar with in front of her. "Not the other kind change, duly noted."

The shifter approached her and nudged her shoulder with its head, a sign that she had recently learned meant the wolf had also missed her and wanted to feel close. "Hello, darling." She ran her long fingers through the wolf's surprisingly very soft fur. 

Regina looked into Emma's eyes. Thanks to her size they were face to face, it was clear as day that no matter what shape she was in, this was Emma.  _ Her  _ Emma. She pressed her forehead to the wolf's and the feeling of love for the creature in front of her overwhelmed her. 

She supposed there was no use in denying it, she was completely in love with Emma Swan. 

The wolf, oblivious to the vampire’s inner conversation, stepped back and nudged her towards the door. "You want to go out?" She was nudged again and the wolf whined. "You want  _ me _ to go out with you?" That earned her a little yelp and a tail wagging, almost destroying whatever was in its path. 

Regina rolled her eyes in amusement. She sometimes doubted if she had gotten herself a partner or a pet. "Very well, lead the way." And so Emma did, leaping down the stairs and jogging out the back door, not having to wait long for the vampire to join her outside. 

The pair walked side by side, Emma being Emma ran in circles around Regina every now and then and would bring her random things she would find or dig from the forest ground, dropping them back to the floor when she completed her goal of making the vampire chuckle. 

They didn't know how long they had been out there when a sound made them stop in their tracks and Emma's ears stood up in attention. She let out a low growl when a druid with blazing eyes came out of the bushes. 

"So this is what it has come to, a wolf fraternizing with the cold blooded murderers." He was pissed. "You should die! You should all die! You are nothing and you shouldn't be here! You shouldn't be alive!"

Emma was now growling and snarling at the clearly upset and intoxicated druid, her stance defensive but Regina was assessing if he was a real threat. It was common for her to receive this kind treatment based on her kind’s history but she was always left alone as soon as they had said their piece, so she would normally ignore it. 

What she couldn't ignore was the pure silver dagger he conjured and was pointing in their general direction, her eyes went black and from the corner of her eye she could see Emma half shifting, long teeth bared, eyes still a glowing golden, claws fully on display and her body was standing in a weird angle as her hind legs were half in wolf form. She was beautiful and she took a step forward and in front of Regina. 

"I would think twice before doing whatever it is that you plan on doing."

"I'm going to kill her! And then I am going to kill you too! You deserve it if you are so much as standing next to her!" 

Emma could tell the guy was not that big of a threat but the fact that he wished Regina, beautiful and charming and  _ her love,  _ Regina dead, did something to her and she charged towards him, making him fall backwards with her on top. Her elongated nails dug into his forearm, breaking the skin and making him drop the dagger with a loud scream. 

"You will get the fuck out of here before I rip your head off. You will not threaten anyone I care about and much less in front of me, so you take your pathetic druid ass out of my forest before it is you who ends up dead and buried in a ditch." She growled to her face and stood up looking down at the man who was scrambling to his feet, holding his bleeding arm. 

"This is not over!" He yelled at Regina. "You and your lap dog will pay for this!" He ran away when Regina let her fangs grow impossibly longer and he realized he was no match for the two of them. 

Emma sighed and finished shifting into human form, drawn to inky black eyes going back to brown. "You okay?"

The brunette lifted her eyebrow. "You do know I am perfectly capable of defending myself."

The blonde blushed. "I - well. Yes. But I wanted to do it." She muttered the latter.

Regina regarded her for a moment. "Thank you, dear. Although not needed, your efforts are appreciated."

The shifter smiled at that. "Should we head back?"

"That's a great idea. I believe we've spent too long out here. Plus-" She looked up and down Emma's naked form. "This whole druid charade has left me exceptionally hungry." She smirked when she felt Emma's heart speed up. 

"I can help with that." Emma said all but bouncing on the ball of her feet. 

"That you can, dear. That you can." She smiled that dangerous smile and led the wolf back to the mansion by the hand. 

After a quick shower, Regina eagerly fed from her and they spent the night very much awake in a tangle of limbs, just the way they knew how to do it. 

  
  


The next morning a really obnoxious sound rose them from their restful sleep. Emma was in her human form spooning Regina and she was not happy to let go. "Please, turn that awful thing off." She muffled into her pillow. 

She faced the other way to grab her phone from the bedside table and frowned. "Huh. I've got a missed call from Graham and a text from dad, they want me to come over as soon as possible. I should go and make sure it's nothing bad." Regina rolled onto her back and pouted with sleepy eyes. It was both their day off and she was hoping they could spend the day together. "I know but I have to." The blonde leaned forward to give said pouting mouth a languid kiss. "I'll come back," she whispered against swollen lips earning herself a groan. 

"Promise? You come back to me."

Emma's smile lit up the entire room. She loved these moments when Regina had just woken up and her emotions were completely on display, she was relaxed and her guard was down. 

"Nothing could keep me away." The answer seemed to please the brunette as she gave a small nod and returned her smile. 

"I guess I should let you go then." But before she did, she kissed the blonde again. Falling back asleep as the shifter got dressed and left her house. 

The rest of the morning went by in a blur but by afternoon a ball of uneasiness was growing deep in her stomach. By dusk she had still not heard back from Emma despite the several text messages and voicemails she’d sent her and she was surprised to realize she was feeling physically ill. 

She suddenly felt like her legs couldn't hold her up and a surge of dizziness hit her as she was walking up the stairs urging her to get a grip on the handrail she had not used in ages.

When she finally made it to her bedroom she sat down on what Emma had decided was her side of the bed, even the bedside table's drawer was filled to the brim with the blonde's belongings. She ran her hand lovingly over the cold bed sheets and thought about how silent the house was. 

She wasn't even tired but before she knew it, she had fallen asleep only to be woken up hours later by an intense pain running up her arm and down her body with what she could only describe as shocks of some sort. 

She had no idea of what was happening but she was sure that whatever it was it had to do with the blonde that had yet to give signs of life. When the pain subdued she couldn't help the feeling of dread that after whatever had happened that morning with the Whites, Emma was not coming back.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pt. 2 coming soon. (I'm working on it but life got in the way)


End file.
